A new study has revealed that a type of vitamin B1 could become a new as well as effectual treatment for one of the world’s major causes of blindness.

University of Texas Medical Branch researchers think that 10 to 15% of blindness cases in the US take place because of uveitis, a swelling of the tissue positioned just below eyeball’s external surface.

Moreover, the researchers also said that it produces even higher rates of blindness all through the world.

Normally, the swelling is treated with antibiotics or steroid eye drops.

In a report slated to appear in the May issue of the journal ‘Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science’, the researchers explained some striking outcomes achieved with benfotiamene, a fat-soluble form of vitamin B1.

To come to the decision, firstly, the researchers injected laboratory mice with bacterial toxins, which normally fabricate a reaction mimicking uveitis.

When those rats had benfotiamene, they fail to build up any signals of the inflammatory disorder.

A UTMB study author said, “Benfotiamene strongly suppresses this eye-damaging condition and the biochemical markers we associate with it.”

“We’re optimistic that this simple supplementation with vitamin B1 has great potential as a new therapy for this widespread eye disease,” the author added.

Benfotiamene's low cost, fast absorption by the body and lack of harmful fallouts make it a perfect applicant for uveitis prevention, the study said.