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Everything You Need to Know about Glaucoma

  • Post category:Glaucoma

Thanks to public awareness campaigns for health conditions like heart disease and diabetes, more people than ever before are aware of the signs and symptoms of problems that deserve immediate medical attention. Glaucoma is another such condition that should not be ignored, but you may not know as much about it. As an eye disease that stealthily and subtly steals your vision, glaucoma eventually leads to blindness without timely treatment. Here is everything you should know about living with glaucoma.

Why Does Glaucoma Develop?

Glaucoma can impact children, teens, and adults alike, though certain demographics like African Americans are more at risk than others. The condition is most commonly a result of dysfunctional drainage within the eye. The front part of each eye is filled with a clear fluid called intraocular fluid or aqueous humor. It is supposed to flow out through the pupil and be absorbed into the bloodstream through the eye’s drainage system. When this system works efficiently, eye pressure remains at a normal level and keeps the eye healthy. (more…)

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How Does Laser Vision Correction Save Your Sight?

Just like the rest of your body, your eyes will become weaker and less agile with age. The vast majority of Americans rely on glasses and contacts in order to maintain a full range of vision, but that reliance can become frustrating, especially if your prescription continually changes as your eyes become progressively worse. LASIK is a laser vision correction procedure that has the ability to save your sight and minimize or even eliminate the need for glasses and contacts.

What Exactly Is LASIK?

LASIK stands for laser in situ keratomileusis. It is the most common laser eye surgery used to achieve vision correction because it improves unaided visual acuity. The ultimate goal of LASIK surgery is to see clearly without the need for contacts or glasses at all.

The LASIK procedure occurs in a few steps. First, the laser creates a thin flap in the cornea. An Excimer laser is then used under that flap to reshape the cornea by removing ultra thin layers one at a time. The flap automatically attaches itself back to the corneal bed without the need for stitches. In the end, the laser corrects the refractive error that had led to nearsightedness and astigmatism. (more…)

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The Three Most Important Things to Know about Glaucoma

  • Post category:Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a debilitating group of eye diseases that can result in vision loss and blindness due to damage to the eye’s optic nerve. African Americans over the age of 40, men and women over the age of 60, and those with a family history of glaucoma are at especially high risk of gradually losing their vision to glaucoma if it is not detected and treated early. Even if you have strong eye health now, learning these three key facts about glaucoma could help you save your vision in the future.

It’s All About Eye Pressure

The front of the eye contains a space called the anterior chamber. A clear fluid is meant to flow continuously in and out of this chamber to nourish nearby tissue. However, in people with glaucoma, the fluid does not drain out as quickly as it needs to. Instead, the clear fluid builds up just like water trying to go down a clogged sink. This buildup creates pressure inside of the eye that is at risk of rising high enough to damage the optic nerve. It is for this reason that controlling pressure inside of the eye should always remain a top priority; once your optic nerve becomes damaged, your vision as a whole is severely threatened. (more…)

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Could Anxiety and Depression Be Linked to Glaucoma?

  • Post category:Glaucoma

It has long been understood that the body is highly interconnected; a condition in one part of the body can trigger changes or reactions in a completely separate part of the body. Recent research suggests that this interconnection even connects mental health with vision health. According to a study in the American Journal of Ophthalmology, researchers found that anxiety and depression are strongly linked with cases of glaucoma. (more…)

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How to Fight Your Dry Eye Condition: The Real Solutions

  • Post category:Dry Eye

If you could choose between spending $3,000 per year for a medical treatment that doesn’t work, or spending $100 per year for a medical treatment that does work, it’s not hard to decide which option you would select! This is actually the decision that you face if you have chronic dry eye. There are many dry eye treatments available today that cost thousands of dollars each year without delivering real results. Rather than emptying your savings account in an effort to afford these treatments, you can benefit from the affordable and scientifically proven solutions offered by Dr. Ahad Mahootchi at The Eye Clinic of Florida. (more…)

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Your Vision Could Be Responsible for Your Chronic Headaches

It’s perfectly normal to experience a minor headache every now and then. Stress, squinting into the sun, and exhaustion can all lead to temporary headaches. Chronic headaches, however, are a different matter entirely. If it is common for you to suffer from headache and migraine pain, your vision could be the culprit behind your discomfort.

Why Might Vision Problems Cause Headaches?

All parts of your body are interconnected, especially your eyes and your head. If you haven’t visited the eye doctor recently or have neglected basic eye care, you could have an eye condition that is leading to your headaches. Vision-related headaches occur in many forms, including as dull pressure behind the eyes, throbbing in the temples, and a light pounding at the top of the head.   (more…)

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Does Your Vision Suffer When Driving at Night?

It’s not uncommon for vision to weaken with age, especially at night. However, if your own diminishing vision makes it difficult to drive at night,  you can’t let the problem go untreated. Driving at night is challenging even under the best circumstances; sudden glares of light from cars, street lamps, and traffic signals force the eyes to constantly adjust to new levels of light with only split seconds in between. This places strain on the eyes, and many people find that their daytime vision remains strong while their nighttime vision starts to become compromised. The good news is that the solution to poor night vision might be as simple as glasses, but only a Board Certified ophthalmologist or optometrist can tell for sure. (more…)

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New Breakthrough in Ocular Anesthesia

Imprimis Pharmaceuticals Logo (PRNewsFoto/Imprimis Pharmaceuticals)
Imprimis Pharmaceuticals Logo (PRNewsFoto/Imprimis Pharmaceuticals)

Nobody actually enjoys enduring IV sedation, but it’s often a necessary evil when undergoing a potentially painful surgery. Until recently, IV sedation was unavoidable during cataract surgery, and this led many patients to suffer from a dangerous cycle of anxiety and stress before the procedure. The Eye Clinic of Florida is changing all of that by becoming one of the very first centers in the country to use a brand new sublingual product that provides effective conscious sedation without the use of an IV!

A Brief Introduction to Cataract Surgery

Cataracts can be identified as the yellowing of the natural lens in the eye. This discoloration occurs gradually over time and ultimately results in a blurry eye lens that makes clear vision impossible. Though cataract surgery is not necessary for any health reasons, many patients choose to receive cataract surgery to repair blurry vision and once again see the world in all of its vivid detail. (more…)

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Destroying Misconceptions about LASIK and Other Laser Vision Correction Procedures

Misconceptions about LASIK and other laser vision correction abound. Laser vision correction, when performed on appropriate candidates, is a safe and effective procedure that has gotten countless people out of glasses and contact lenses.   But LASIK is not for everyone.  Even if your eye surgeon tells you that you qualify for the surgery, it may not achieve all of your visual goals.  Below are some of the more common considerations when thinking about whether laser vision correction is right for you.

The easiest way to think about LASIK is to consider it like putting on a permanent pair of contact lenses. Like contact lenses or glasses these “contact lenses” improve the focus of the eye.  But unlike contact lenses they never need to be put in or taken out.   They never need to be cleaned;  and you can swim in them.  Imagine waking up in the morning and being able to see the alarm clock without putting on your glasses. Laser vision correction achieves this by using a laser to gently reshape the front of your eye (cornea).

What laser vision cannot do is correct for disease or natural aging of the eye.  For instance, people who are not seeing well because of cataract (a cloudy lens) can achieve LASIK-like results only by having the cataract removed.  Those in their forties and up may enjoy not having to wear glasses at distance after surgery, but they will need glasses for reading.

In short, LASIK / laser vision correction is a great procedure for properly chosen candidates who understand its benefits and limitations.

I hope this helps.

Below I’ve compiled some common misconceptions about laser vision correction:

I can’t get LASIK because I have astigmatism

Not true.  LASIK surgery can help nearsightedness, farsightedness and people who have astigmatism.

My eyesight is too bad for LASIK eye surgery

Laser vision correction has undergone rapid technologic advancement since its introduction in the mid-1990s.  Today, even people with high glasses prescriptions are potential candidates.  Only an ophthalmologist can determine if you qualify.

I’m too old for LASIK surgery

To determine whether or not you are a candidate for LASIK does not depend on your age.  There is no fixed upper age limit for LASIK.  However, older people may be better served by cataract surgery.  Advances in cataract surgery allow for LASIK-like results while elimintating the cloudy lens in the eye at the same time.

I’ll have to wear glasses after LASIK anyways

Many people who have LASIK surgery do not need to wear any prescription glasses after the procedure.  Those in their mid-forties and older typically need reading glasses for fine print and near work but function without glasses for most other tasks.

I can’t risk LASIK, my job depends on my eyesight

eyeLASIK surgery has been approved for pilots, firefighters, military personnel and astronauts, all of which rely on their eyesight to perform their job.  These professions have found that glasses can be broken and contacts lost so surgically corrected eyesight is actually a benefit.

I was told I am not a candidate for LASIK

Even if you were told many years ago you were not a candidate for LASIK it is very likely that you are now.  The technology continues to improve and with the latest advances more and more people are benefiting from the procedure. (more…)

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