Punctal plugs are something we use to help treat Dry Eye Syndrome.  

This syndrome is a multifactorial problem that comes from a generalized decrease in the amount and quality of the tears you make.  There is often both a lack of tear volume and inflammation in the tear glands, which interfere with tear production and also cause the quality of the tears to not be as good.

We make tears through two different mechanisms.  One is called a basal secretion of tears, meaning a constant low flow or production of tears to keep the eye moist and comfortable.  There is a second mechanism called reflexive tear production, which is a sudden flood of tears caused by the excitation of nerves on the eye surface when they detect inflammatory conditions or foreign body sensations. It is a useful reflexive nerve loop that helps wash out any foreign body or toxic substance you might get in the eye by flooding the eye with tears.  Consider what happens when you get suntan lotion in your eye.  The nerves […]

Have you ever seen a temporary black spot in your vision? How about jagged white lines? Something that looks like heat waves shimmering in your peripheral vision?

If you have, you may have been experiencing what is known as an ocular migraine. Ocular migraines occur when blood vessels spasm in the visual center of the brain (the occipital lobe) or the retina.

They can take on several different symptoms but typically last from a few minutes to an hour. They can take on either positive or negative visual symptoms, meaning they can produce what looks like a black blocked-out area in your vision (negative symptom), or they can produce visual symptoms that you see but know aren’t really there, like heat waves or jagged white lines that look almost like lightning streaks (positive symptoms).

Some people do get a headache after the visual symptoms but most do not. They get the visual symptoms, which resolve on their own in under an hour, and then generally just feel slightly out of sorts after the episode but don’t […]

Not everyone understands the importance of sunglasses when the weather turns cold.

Polarized sunglasses are usually associated with Summer, but in some ways it is even more important to wear protective glasses during the Winter.

It’s getting to be that time of year when the sun sits at a much different angle, and its rays impact our eyes and skin at a lower position. This translates to an increase in the exposure of harmful UV rays, especially if we are not wearing the proper sunglasses as protection.

Polarized sunglasses, which are much different than the older dye-tinted lenses, are both anti-reflective and UV resistant. A good-quality polarized sunglass lens will protect you from the entire UV spectrum. This not only preserves your vision, but it also protects the skin around the eyes, which is thought to have a much higher rate of susceptibility to skin cancer.

Snow poses another issue that can be countered by polarized sunglasses.

Snow on the ground tends to act as a mirror because of its white reflective surface and this reflection […]

Now that you have picked up your new pair of prescription eyeglasses, your focus should become taking care of them. This is a task many disregard, but it is imperative that you make sure you are following a couple simple steps to keep the quality of your vision with your new spectacles.

We are all guilty of using a garment when in a rush to wipe away a pesky smudge on our glasses. This act is unfortunately the worst thing you can do for your lenses.

No matter how clean your clothes are, dust particles and even small bits of sand and debris cling to them. Since eyeglass lenses are not made of diamonds, these tiny little particles can do tremendous amounts of damage to your new lenses. The smallest little crumb can grind a scratch directly in your line of vision, which in turn can render your glasses almost useless.

Most of us know what it feels like trying to concentrate on the world in front of you when there is a little scratch distorting […]

The American Optometric Association has recommendations for how often adults need to get their eyes examined and those recommendations vary according to the level of risk you have for eye disease.

As you can see, the guidelines recommend more frequent exams as you get older. Here are the TOP 4 REASONS why you need your eyes examined more frequently as you get older:

1. Glaucoma

Glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness in the United States. It has no noticeable symptoms when it begins and the only way to detect glaucoma is through a thorough eye exam. Glaucoma gets more and more common as you get older. Your risk of glaucoma is less then 1% if you are under 50 and over 10% if you are 80 or over. The rates […]

Diabetic retinopathy is an eye condition that can affect the retina of people who have diabetes.

The retina is the light-sensitive tissue that lines the back of the eye, and it detects light that is then processed as an image by the brain. Chronically high blood sugar or large fluctuations in blood sugar can damage the blood vessels in the retina. This can result in bleeding in the retina or leakage of fluid.

Diabetic retinopathy can be divided into non-proliferative or proliferative diabetic retinopathy.

Non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy:  In the early stage of the disease, there is weakening of the blood vessels in the retina that causes out-pouching called microaneurysms. These microaneurysms can leak fluid into the retina. There can also be yellow deposits called hard exudates present in the retina from leaky vessels.

Diabetic macula edema is when the fluid leaks into the region of the retina called the macula. The macula is important for sharp, central vision needed for reading and driving. The accumulation of fluid in the macula causes blurry vision.

Proliferative diabetic retinopathy: […]