Astigmatism

The term astigmatism is used to describe a cornea that isn't round. The cornea is shaped like a football rather than a round, spherical basketball. Like a football, the astigmatic cornea has two curves: a steeper one, and a flatter one 90 degrees away. These two curves bend light entering the eye, causing two images to form on the retina.

Patients with astigmatism may notice blurred or ghost images close up or far away. Astigmatism may be present in various degrees and is found in approximately 30 to 40% of individuals who wear glasses or contact lenses.

Bandage Contact Lens

A contact lens applied to a healing or compromised cornea, providing protection and allowing it to heal, while alleviating the constant rubbing of the eyelids.

Clear Lens Replacement

For individuals over 40 who are considering refractive surgery to decrease dependence on glasses and contact lenses, clear lens replacement (CLR) is an option. In essence, this procedure entails removing the natural lens of the eye and replacing it with an intraocular lens (IOL) implant. The procedure is essentially the same as a cataract operation with lens implant, however, in this case, the procedure is completed prior to cataract development for the refractive advantage.

Conjuctivitis (Pink Eye)

Conjuctivitis, commonly known as pink eye, is an infection of the conjunctiva (the outer-most layer of the eye that covers the sclera). The three most common types of conjunctivitis are: viral, allergic, and bacterial. Each requires different treatments. With the exception of the allergic type, conjunctivitis is typically contagious.

Dry Eye Syndrome

Clear Lens Replacement

What are the symptoms of dry eyes?

Dry eyes can cause a gritty, sandy sensation, burning, stinging and itching. Some people notice their eyes sticking shut when they wake up. Sometimes a dry eye can actually seem watery. The eye can be producing poor quality, reflex tears, which don't do the job of keeping the eye lubricated.

Endophthalmitis

Endophthalmitis is an infection inside the eye, that is, an intraocular infection. There are multiple different types of endophthalmitis, but our discussion will be limited to the most common type, post-operative endophthalmitis. This condition occurs most commonly after cataract surgery, typically afflicting approximately one in every 1,000 patients. In most cases, surgery was routine and uncomplicated, though certain surgical complications may increase the incidence of this infection. Patients typically present with a rather sudden onset of progressively worsening vision, pain, and a red eye. Most patients present the symptoms with the condition 3 to 12 days after surgery.

Excimer Laser

STAR S4 IR Sys-Blue LR_150x300.jpg The Excimer Laser is the instrument used in the majority of refractive surgical procedures. Rather than burning or cutting material, the excimer laser adds enough energy to disrupt the molecular bonds of the surface tissue, which effectively disintegrates into the air in a tightly controlled manner through ablation rather than burning. Thus excimer lasers have the useful property that they can remove exceptionally fine layers of surface material with almost no heating or change to the remainder of the material which is left intact.

Flashes and Floaters

Floaters are caused by tiny bits of vitreous gel or cells that cast shadows on the retina. Flashes occur when the vitreous tugs on the sensitive retina tissue.

Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a condition that affects one or both eyes. It is associated with damage to inner parts of the eye (optic disc) and loss of vision. The amount of vision loss will depend on the severity and how long the condition has been present. We offer several glaucoma procedures to treat our patients.

Hyperopia (Farsightedness)

Hyperopia, or farsightedness, occurs when images are formed behind the retina, resulting in a blurred image. This is due to an eye that is relatively too short, or the refractive powers of the cornea and lens of the eye are relatively too weak. Depending on the degree of farsightedness and the age of the individual, some farsighted people may see clearly at both distance and near through the process of accommodation, or focusing of the lens in the eye. This may cause significant eyestrain, however, accomaditive abilities are gradually lost with aging.

Implantable Contact Lens

Implantable contact lenses, known as phakic intraocular lenses (IOLs) to ophthalmologists, are presently being investigated as another refractive procedure. Phakic IOLs hold promise as potentially powerful refractive tools with almost unlimited potential to correct refractive errors (nearsightedness and farsightedness). At the present time, however, phakic IOLs are being studied in clinical trials to determine efficacy and safety. If FDA approved, phakic IOLs are expected to gain wide acceptance from ophthalmologists who have implanted IOLs in cataract patients for the past four decades with excellent results.

Intacs (Intracorneal Rings)

Intacs is a recent and revolutionary corneal ring prescription insert that is entirely reversible. Thus, patients who elect to have Intacs are not "locked in" to the procedure forever, as are patients who undergo other refractive procedures such as LASIK and PRK.

Intraocular Pressure (IOP)

Intraocular literally means within the eye. For example, intraocular pressure refers to pressure within the eye; an intraocular foreign body resides within the eye. The pressure readings helps doctors study the health of your eye.

Iris

The iris, visible through the clear cornea as the colored disc inside the eye, is a thin diaphragm composed mostly of connective tissue and smooth muscle fibers.

Keratoconus

Keratoconus is an eye condition where the clear front of the eye, the cornea, gets thin and bulges outward into a cone shape. This usually begins in the teens or early twenties and affects mostly males. And one eye is usually worse than the other eye. It is also oftentimes familial, so alert other family members to get their eyes checked.

LASIK

LASIK, an acronym for Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis, is a form of refractive laser eye surgery performed by ophthalmologists intended for correcting myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism.

Lens

The lens or crystalline lens is a transparent, biconvex structure in the eye that, along with the cornea, helps to refract light to focus on the retina. Its function is thus similar to a man-made optical lens.

Limbal Relaxing Incisions

Limbal Relaxing Incisions (LRI) are truly a modification of Astigmatic Keratotomy (AK), which is a procedure to treat astigmatism. Astigmatism is present when the cornea is not spherical, i.e., it is steeper in one meridian than the opposite meridian 180 degrees away. The cornea with astigmatism may be thought of as being more football shaped rather than basketball shaped. LRI's are incisions that are placed on the far peripheral aspect of the cornea (the limbus) resulting in a cornea that is more round. The astigmatism is thus reduced and uncorrected vision is improved. There are other options in correcting an astigmatism with the advances made in laser vision correction. Consult your ophthalmologist to explore your options.

LTK (Laser Thermokeratoplasty)

The treatment of hyperopia (farsightedness) with laser thermokeratoplasty (LTK) is an exciting new addition to the refractive surgical procedures that eye surgeons may now offer to patients. Over 70 million people in the U.S. alone are hyperopic and as many as 80% of those may be candidates for this procedure. There are always new procedures that may be possible to treat hyperopia just as well. Discuss your options with your ophthalmologist.

Macular Degeneration

Many people are not aware that age-related macular degeneration, often called ARMD, is the leading cause of blindness in the world. According to the eye-health organization Prevent Blindness America, some 13 million Americans have evidence of age-related macular degeneration.

Microkeratome

A microkeratome is a precision surgical instrument with an oscillating blade designed for creating the corneal flap in LASIK surgery.

Myopia (Nearsightedness)

Myopia, or nearsightedness, is a condition of the eye in which images are formed in front of the retina, resulting in a blurred image. This occurs when the eye is relatively too long or the refractive powers of the cornea and lens of the eye are relatively too strong.

Myopia usually begins in childhood, and progressively worsens until adulthood is achieved, usually about 18 to 21 years of age.

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Presbyopia (Age Related Farsightedness)

All people will experience difficulty reading, usually beginning in their 40s. There is a lens in the eye, which “accommodates” light so that we can see at near distances. With Presbyopia, light from a near object enters the eye, the cornea refracts the light and the lens changes shape to accommodate for the decreased focal length of a near object.

This is exactly the same process that occurs when focusing your camera on a near object. Unfortunately this lens within the eye, as it ages, loses its ability to focus for us and we need reading glasses or bifocals.

Presbyopia can be dealt with in a number of ways and now can be corrected through a laser vision procedure called CK, so please contact our staff to better understand your options and if this is something that you think you are experiencing.

PRK

Photorefractive Keratectomy (PRK) is a procedure in which the surface of the cornea is reshaped by an ophthalmologist using an Excimer laser. PRK may be used to treat myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), or astigmatism. PRK does not involve creation of a corneal flap utilizing the microkeratome, and therefore, the protective superficial layers of the cornea must heal post-operatively. This generally means that patients who undergo PRK will require significantly more time than LASIK patients to achieve their best vision, but avoid more possible complications due to the elimination of the flap creation.