In view of subsequent events it would be difficult to find a more interesting subject of inquiry than the internal religious and sociological conditions in Samaria at this age.
Its incidence following spine surgeries exceeds that after cardiothoracic surgeries. Various causes attributed to postoperative blindness include ischemic optic neuropathy, central or branch retinal artery occlusion, cortical blindness, and rarely external ocular injury.
Medics at Ruhr-Universitaet-Bochum in Germany have found the cause of a hereditary, progressive form of blindness: they have identified the previously unknown protein CCDC66, the loss of which initially leads to night blindness and in due course usually results in complete blindness.