Pauline Ward
Pauline Ward has been a participant at Sound Health for 11 years since being diagnosed with dry macular degeneration almost seven years ago while in her early sixties. Her condition can also be ascribed to genetics, and she recalls memories of her mother who would strategically place the grandchildren within her line of peripheral vision attempting to see their faces. Pauline admits that she, too, has had to take similar measures in the past.
According to Pauline, her optometrist was the first to detect the granules in her eyes, though it took six/seven years before the condition affected her vision. The way she describes the transition from dry macular degeneration to wet, is that a tiny spot is distorted in the affected eye and gradually grows to become a “blind spot”. Her blind spot grew until about three years ago when its scope spanned the proportion of a quarter, which is visually the range of seventeen characters on a page of print. Like Robert, she was also visually lacking in seeing at a distance, and completely unable to view remote colors.
Pauline travelled from Australia, where there were no methods of treatment, to the US to try the revolutionary technique at Sound Health. After about 10-11 seconds with the appropriate frequency, she could see haze through the spot, though not clearly. After several days of tones, she was able to see complete letters within the holes and eventually the span of her impairment decreased as did holes in her vision. She even regained the ability to see rich colors myopically.
When critics support this scientific-based method as being a placebo, Pauline knows how to respond:
“…it wasn’t the first sound you tried, or the second or the third; you know it might have been the tenth. So I’m sitting here thinking, ‘Oh nothing’s happening, nothing’s happening, nothing’s happening’; so I wasn’t expecting it, you know, because you think nothing’s happening and then suddenly the right sound (for) ten seconds and it’s amazing. You can begin to see the letters and colors.”
The Basics of Macular Degeneration
Macular degeneration, commonly referred to as age-related macular degeneration or AMD, is a condition in which the macula, the part of the retina responsible for detailed and central vision, deteriorates causing vision loss.
There are two types of macular degeneration: dry (non-neovascular), with dry macular degeneration being more commonly diagnosed at 85-90 percent of all cases, and wet (neovascular), which may cause more profound vision loss.
Eye Photos courtesy of AllAboutVision.com
Dry AMD is caused either by the thinning of macular tissues or a deposit of drusen, or yellow spots, between the retinal pigment epithelium and the choroid beneath it. Those who suffer from early dry AMD may continue to have good vision for a while; however, as the condition progress it will cause gradual loss of central vision. The loss of vision for someone diagnosed with wet AMD, which dry may progress to, will become far more serious.
Wet AMD is caused by abnormal blood vessel growth behind the macula, in which the blood vessels leak blood and protein, killing off light-sensitive retina cells and creating blind spots. Severity of the vision loss depends on the amount of fluid build-up and whether or not scarring is incurred.
Current Conventional Treatments
The literature reports that there are very few possibilities for regaining one’s sight for those suffering from AMD, and those vary according to the stage of advancement the condition. Once dry AMD is diagnosed, there are no cures, only treatments for managing it. Barring the intervention of certain nutrients which can be used to hinder its progress to wet AMD, particularly high levels of antioxidants and zinc, there are no therapies or medications that can eliminate the condition.
For those suffering from wet AMD, Laser surgery is one option; however, the laser that seals off leaking blood vessels may cause damage to the retina. Serious side effects may occur because of the surgery, such as a detached retina, cataracts, or eye infection.
The FDA has also approved drugs such as Avastin and Lucentis for use with AMD, these two are commonly thought to be the most effective, which are aimed at treating and managing wet AMD through Photodynamic Therapy, or PDT. During this treatment, the drug, known as a photosensitizing agent, is injected into the eye. A light source is then used as a catalyst, triggering the chemical’s cell-killing properties, in this case sealing off leaky blood vessels. This treatment is less invasive than laser therapy though it, too, comes equipped with a list of side effects.
Given the lack of options, the growing numbers of people affected by AMD and the lack of conventional options, the research results at the Sound Health Research Institute prove not only to be innovative, but necessary. Human BioAcoustics is the only non-invasive means of aiding the body in correcting issues thought to be incurable by conventional methods, such as age-onset macular degeneration.
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