Video – Child’s Eye Exam as Seen Through the Eyes of a Child

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This is a great video (BEST VIEWED THROUGH YOUR FIREFOX WEB BROWSER) about a kid who is having his or her FIRST eye examination. When a child enters an eye clinic for the first time – there is usually some apprehension and fear (for both the child… and the parent!).

Viewing this great video with your child prior to having an eye exam can help explain some of the vision tests that the Eye Doctor and his/her support staff is doing. It will also help you and your child become more comfortable with what goes on during an eye exam. Believe it or not….an eye exam can be a lot of fun!

Visionary Eyecare provides eye exams for children at all 3 of our Broward County / Ft Lauderdale area Locations – Pembroke Pines (next to Lenscrafters), Davie (next to Pearle Vision) and Sunrise (Next to Lenscrafters and INSIDE the Sawgrass Mills Mall).

We are providers for EyeMed and this excellent video was provided by EyeMed Vision Care.

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Video – Eye Anatomy: The Cornea…and Contact Lenses, Degenerations and Keratoconus

Your eye is like a camera.  There are 2 structures that focus light – much like the lens of a camera.  These 2 structures are the cornea and the lens.  The cornea is the clear front surface of your eye that is located in front of the colored part of your eye (called the iris).

If you are a contact lens wearer – the contact lens sits on the cornea.  Not all corneas are the same size.  Some are more curved or “steep” and others are more “flat”.  It is important to be properly fit for contact lenses by your eye doctor.  If a contact lens is not properly fit, the contact can cause serious problems for the wearer – including corneal distortion, corneal swelling, corneal ulcers, inflammation and more.

A corneal topographer is an instument that can detect any corneal distortions caused from a contact lens.  A contact lens may look and feel “fine” but, it can still be causing problems that you may be unaware of.  Many times sleeping in your contact lenses or overwearing your contacts (wearing a 2 week contact for more than 2 weeks) can cause corneal distortions.

Cornea With Keratoconus

At Visionary Eyecare in Pembroke Pines, Sunrise and Davie- we perform a corneal topography on ALL contact lens patients. During the contact lens eye exam we use the corneal topographer to monitor the health of the patient’s cornea before fitting with a new contact lens and also to monitor the corneal health year to year for established contact lens wearers.

Corneal Topography can also detect some corneal degenerations and corneal dystrophies like keratoconus.  Typically a person with keratoconus has a lot of astigmatistm, distorted vision and possibly sensitivity to light.  The cornea starts to protrude in a “cone-like” fashion.  Most of the time a specialty contact lens can help these patients see clearer and may prevent the corneal dystrophy progression.  In advanced cases, the apex of the cornea may thin so drastically from keratoconus that a corneal transplant may be necessary.

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Video – What is Astigmatism? A Video Description of Astigmatism

Astigmatism is a refractive error –  meaning that the light that is coming into the eye is not focused perfectly on the “film” in back of the eye (called the retina – which is a layer of nerve tissue).  The retina is much like a movie screen or the film in your camera – the image must be focused PERFECTLY on the retina for the eye to see clearly.  If the image is focused in front of the retina or behind the retina – much like a movie screen or camera film – the image will be blurry.  This unfocused image is sent by the retina to the brain – where it is perceived as blurry, cloudy or distorted vision.

Astigmatism is a refractive error caused when the front surface of the eye (the cornea) or the lens (which is located inside the eye behind the colored part of the eye – called the iris) is irregularly shaped and oblong – much like a football.  This irregular shape causes the light to be focused on 2 seperate points – either in front of or behind the retina.  This causes distortion of the vision and blur at all distances.  So objects at a distance and also nearby are blurry and/or distorted.  The higher the degree of astigmatism – the more distortion and blur you will have.

Several methods can focus the light perfectly on the retina for you.  Glasses, contact lenses (called astigmatic or toric contacts) or laser vision correction are aids that are available to help focus the light and images on the retina – which will get you to see clearly again!

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See the Inside of Your Eye …. the Way Your Eye Doctor Sees It!

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MOUSE OVER THE ABOVE IMAGE

TO SEE INTERNAL EYE STRUCTURES!

Your Eye Doctor needs to see the internal eye structures of your eyes to determine if your eyes are healthy.

You can move your mouse over the image above to see what your Eye Doctor sees during your Dilated eye health exam.  The doctor can see your optic nerve, your retina, your macula and your blood vessels inside your eyes.   Your doctor is looking for eye health changes like bleeding in your retina, tumors in your retina, macular degeneration, glaucoma, retinal holes, tears, detachments etc.

Most eye health issues DO NOT cause symptoms until it is too late…that is why is it VERY IMPORTANT to have an eye exam every 12 months – even if your vision is not blurry and  has not changed at all.

Examining internal eye health can also help your Eye Doctor determine if you may have any SYSTEMIC problems going on that you may be unaware of – such as: Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, Cancer, High Cholesterol, Brain Tumors, Multiple Sclerosis,  Sickle Cell Anemia…and many, many  more.

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Fox News Video: Contact Lens Dangers

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View this video and give us your feedback in the  comments area below!

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YouTube Video: If You Don’t Have Any Vision Problems…Why Should You See an Eye Doctor?

You don’t have any vision problems….your vision is perfect……so why should you get your eyes examined yearly…or at all??  Do you know anyone who has really good eyesight…and feels that there is no reason to go to the eye doctor because they don’t need eyeglasses??

Well, the above YouTube video is for YOU and THEM!

A common misconception is that the only reason to see an eye doctor is to get some glasses, contacts or to get their prescription updated.  Does this sound familiar??

A comprehensive eye exam is MOSTLY about checking the HEALTH of your eyes.  A lot of eye health problems – diseases and disorders of the eyes (like glaucoma, retinal holes and tears etc) – do NOT cause any kind of symptoms (like blurred vision, headaches, pain, feelings of “pressure” in and around eyes etc…).

Just because you can see clearly, see colors correctly and don’t notice any vision problems does not necessarily mean that your eyes are healthy.

Did you know that a comprehensive eye exam can ALSO provide early detection of some SYSTEMIC problems.  All sorts of systemic problems – like Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, High Cholesterol, Brain Tumors etc….can be detected during a comprehensive eye exam. If your eye doctor suspects that you may have a systemic problem then, he or she can refer you to your primary care doctor for further evaluation and testing to determine if you have the systemic disease.

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Video: Contact Lens Tips for Insertion, Removal and Cleaning

This is a good video from Optifree that gives instructions on Contact Lens insertion, removal, proper cleaning and other instructions and tips for successful contact lens wear.

ALWAYS wash, rinse and dry your hands thoroughly each time you handle your contact lenses. This will help eliminate germs (bacteria, viruses, fungus etc) that can cause eye infections and vision loss.

Clean, Rinse and Disinfect your contact lenses after wearing them. Make sure that you DO rub your contact lenses (even if the solution says “No Rub”) – this will help in loosening any deposits, films or debris on your lenses.   Saline solutions are used to RINSE contact lenses (NOT to clean or store contacts) – use multipurpose solutions for cleaning and storing contacts.

Remove your lenses IMMEDIATELY if they become uncomfortable or your eyes become red and/or light sensitive. Discomfort and irritation can be an early warning sign of a problem.  If discomfort continues AFTER you remove your contact lenses – IMMEDIATELY contact your eye doctor.

DO NOT INSERT A CONTACT LENS INTO AN EYE THAT IS RED, IRRITATED, PAINFUL  OR UNCOMFORTABLE!!

Do NOT sleep in your contact lenses. People who sleep in their contact lenses have a higher risk of eye infections and ulcerations.

DISCARD your contact lenses as directed by your eye doctor (daily, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly etc). Wearing a contact lens longer than the approved wear time can cause infections and corneal distortions (the front of the eye can become warped with contact lens overwear).

Do NOT swim, shower or bathe in your contacts.  Tap water and pools can have organisms in them that can cause infections an even PERMENANT vision loss.

Have YEARLY Contact Lens Eye Examinations. Your eye doctor can re-evaluate and re-fit (if needed) your contact lenses for you every 12 months.  Sometimes contact lenses feel comfortable even if they are causing problems.  Your eye doctor will evaluate if the prescription needs to be changed to get you the most precise vision and they will also evaluate if the contact lens that you are wearing is causing problems that you may be unaware of.

CLICK HERE for more information about Contact Lenses from Visionary Eyecare’s website.

Video – Sunglasses are like Sunscreen for your Eyes: Protection from Aging Changes and Some Forms of Eye Cancer

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CLICK HERE

TO SEE A FOX NEWS VIDEO ABOUT EYE CANCER AND PROTECTION WITH SUNGLASS WEAR

The sun can cause aging changes to your skin… and also to your EYES.

Macular Degeneration and Cataracts are aging changes that can be brought on earlier in your life by exposure to the sun its ultraviolet (UV) radiation.  Wearing sunglasses with good UV protection can be like wearing sunscreen for your eyes.

There are many different types of eye cancer that can affect any part of the eye.  A patient can get cancer on the Eyelids, the Conjunctiva (the “skin” over the white of your eye), the Iris (the colored part of your eye), the Optic Nerve (the nerve from the eye back to the brain), the Retina (the nerve layer inside your eye – responsible for your vision), the Choroid (the blood vessels beneath the retina) and more.

The types of cancers that usually affect the skin (aka on the eyelids….basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma etc.. ) can be the same types of cancers that particularly thrive in sunlight and UV exposure – just like any other type of skin cancer.

EVERYONE (including children) should be wearing sunglasses with UV protection any time they are outdoors. People who are particularly vulnerable are those with with blue eyes, light complexions, work outdoors, have had any PREVIOUS skin cancer or who are taking any medications that make them more light sensitive.

Routine yearly eye examinations are the KEY to early detection and treatment for any types of eye cancer and any other type of eye disease

Click on the FOX News link to see an informative Video about Eye Cancer and Protection Against Aging Changes with regular wear of good UV protection sunwear.  It tells a story of a man who found a weird eyelid freckle…

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