Albert Einstein Medical Center Offers First Therapy to Reduce Vision Loss Caused by Stroke & TBI; NovaVision VRT Now Available to Improve Quality of Life for Patients with Visual Deficits Once Considered Untreatable

Business Wire, May 31, 2005

BOCA RATON, Fla. -- NovaVision, Inc. today announced that Albert Einstein Medical Center has entered into an agreement to offer NovaVision VRT(TM) Vision Restoration Therapy. VRT is a non-invasive, computerized treatment that can help restore vision lost as a result of stroke or traumatic brain injury (TBI), a condition previously considered untreatable. NovaVision VRT--cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in April 2003--is offered to patients via a network of clinics housed among the nation's leading medical institutions.

"NovaVision VRT provides promise and hope for patients with particular visual deficits," said Dr. Mark L. Moster, Chairman of the Division of Neuro-Ophthalmology at Einstein Medical Center and Professor of Neurology at Thomas Jefferson University School of Medicine.

Albert Einstein Medical Center is part of Albert Einstein Healthcare Network, a private, not-for-profit organization with several major facilities and outpatient centers that provide compassionate, high-quality healthcare, to the Philadelphia area. Albert Einstein Healthcare Network includes MossRehab, which treats more stroke patients than any other rehabilitation facility in the Philadelphia region and has consistently rated as one of the nation's best medical rehabilitation facilities by U.S. News & World Report.

The need for a rehabilitative therapy like VRT is substantial. An estimated 4.8 million people have survived a stroke (American Heart Association, 2004 Update), and at least 5.3 million Americans currently live with disabilities resulting from TBI (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, May 2004). Approximately 1.5 million stroke and TBI victims in the United States suffer from major visual field deficits, and that number grows by more than 90,000 new patients each year. To date, more than 700 patients have been treated with VRT. Clinical results of VRT are positive: more than 65 percent of patients who underwent VRT for an initial six-month treatment period showed measurable improvements in their vision.

VRT is based on the principle of neuroplasticity--the ability of partially damaged neurons in the brain to compensate for injury and adjust their activity in response to stimulation from the environment. After stroke or TBI, a zone of residual vision exists between regions within the brain's vision-processing areas. Within this zone, there are areas that can be improved using precise patterns of stimulation.

Following a clinical assessment and diagnosis at Albert Einstein Medical Center, VRT is conducted in the comfort of the patient's home with the use of a computerized device. The patient performs a customized therapy which displays stimuli on the screen in the area identified during diagnostic that shows potential for recovery. The patient responds to each stimulus while focusing on the fixation point displayed. Repeated exposure to these stimuli over an initial treatment period of approximately six to seven months may activate neurons and help improve vision, with some patients showing improvements within a couple months of beginning therapy.

Developing the Fourth Pillar of Rehabilitation

While speech, physical and occupational therapy are the long-standing, mainstream treatment regimens for victims of stroke and brain trauma, VRT is the first clinical application of rehabilitation for vision loss. Like these traditional pillars of rehabilitation, VRT enables stroke and TBI patients to restore an area of function that can dramatically improve their quality of life.

"NovaVision is committed to establishing VRT as a standard method of rehabilitation for patients recovering from stroke and TBI," said Navroze Mehta, president and chief executive officer of NovaVision, Inc. "Partnering with leading specialists at the forefront of rehabilitative medicine, like Albert Einstein Medical Center, is a critical step in achieving this goal in Pennsylvania and across the country."

About Albert Einstein Healthcare Network

Albert Einstein Healthcare Network, a member of the Jefferson Health System, provides healthcare services through Albert Einstein Medical Center, Germantown Community Health Services, Willow Terrace (a nursing home), Einstein at Elkins Park, MossRehab, Willowcrest (a center for subacute care), Belmont Behavioral Health and a number of outpatient and satellite locations. Einstein also operates a primary care network, Einstein Neighborhood Healthcare. For more information, visit www.einstein.edu or call 1-800-EINSTEIN.

About NovaVision, Inc.

NovaVision, Inc. develops and distributes NovaVision VRT(TM) Vision Restoration Therapy, the first and only FDA cleared, computer-based therapy to improve visual deficits caused by stroke or traumatic brain injury (TBI). NovaVision, Inc. is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida with European offices that include clinics and research and development in Magdeburg, Germany. VRT is based on 15 years of research with clinical studies published in leading journals including Nature Medicine and the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. To date, more than 65 percent of patients who underwent VRT for six months demonstrated measurable vision improvements. VRT is currently offered at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, Emory Eye Center, the University of Miami Department of Neurology, Neurological Institute of New York at Columbia University Medical Center, the neuro-ophthalmology practice of Richard H. Legge, M.D., Kresge Eye Institute and now, the Albert Einstein Medical Center. For more information about NovaVision VRT please visit www.novavisiontherapy.com or call 888-205-0800.