How do you treat dry eyes? Especially when they get itchy, red, and irritable? Most people treat the symptoms because, dry eye syndrome is not usually curable. Patients usually resorts to putting drops that reduces the redness inot the eyes. Unfortunately, this is more of a symptomatic treatment than a cure so one has to keep repeating it every time the eyes get red and dry.
These drops constrict the blood vessels in the eyes to make them less red. Prolonged use, however, necessitates using more and more of the eye drops till it usually stops working altogether. The blood vessels obviously get used to the medication and refuse to co-operate and constrict.
We don’t know what causes dry eyes but you could take precautions to prevent it from get worse. Try and protect them with dark glasses when you go out in the sun. If the dust outside irritates your eyes, make sure your dark glasses have a foam sealing at each end and all around, so it fits snugly against your skin and does not allow the dust to go into your eyes. Inside the house, too, you can minimize dust with an air cleaner and use a humidifier so the air is not too dry.
Talk to your ophthalmologist or optometrist about what drops to use. They might advise you against buying over the counter eye drops because it will not do anything for your dry eyes. Instead, you might be asked to buy eye drops that are called ‘artificial tears’ which lubricate the eye or maybe even Restasis which actually makes tear production in your eye increase.
Just in case you wear contact lenses, don’t put any kind of drops in your eyes when you have them on. Take them off, put the drops in, wait for a while – it might be mentioned on the label for how long you should wait – and then put your lenses back on. Here, too you can check with the specialist what eye drops contact lens wearers can use. If you do have a major problem, discuss it with the eye care specialist and maybe he will change your lenses. If the irritation gets unbearable, you might have to discontinue wearing them at least till the condition has become better.
Remember that if you are scheduled for eye surgery or LASIK, you might not be able to go through with it until your dry eyes have cleared up as it causes complications after the procedure. It would be better to wait till the problem has subsided before you go in for any kind of eye surgery.
Maybe some of the drugs you are taking right now are responsible for your dry eyes. Well, the doctor could maybe change the medication if possible. Don’t, however, tamper with changes in medications on your own. Your eye care physician would be the one to go to in case it is due to an eye infection. Conditions like blepharatis have been known to cause dry eyes. This will necessitate medicated eye drops.
There is ongoing research to find a cure for dry eyes. Products like trehalose have tested positive but further studies are needed before any of these products can be introduced in the market.
Steroid Injections Can Slow Diabetes-Related Eye Disease Source: Johns Hopkins Medicine
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Wilmer Eye Institute have found that injecting a corticosteroid, triamcinolone, directly into the eye slows the progression of a complication of diabetes that frequently leads to blindness called: proliferative diabetic retinopathy.
Because the use of steroids in the eye may increase the risk of glaucoma and cataract, laser photocoagulation remains the treatment of choice until further development of drugs that may reproduce the good effects of steroids, without the damage.
Neil M Bressler, the James P. Gills Professor of Ophthalmology and chief of the Retina Division of the Johns Hopkins Wilmer Eye Institute, chair of the government-sponsored Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network said, “Steroid treatment worked, but because of safety issues, cannot be recommended routinely at this time. It is a condition that can be treated safely and effectively with lasers.”
Published in the December issue of the Archives of Ophthalmology, the study described and compared one of two treatments on 840 eyes from 693 men and women between July 2004 and May 2006. The subjects, about evenly divided between men and women with an average age of 63, had diabetic retinopathy with macular edema, a swelling of the central portion of the retina that’s caused by leakage of fluid.
Proliferative diabetic retinopathy is marked by the growth of new and unwanted blood vessels on the optic nerve in the back of the eye (which communicates information from the retina to the brain) or another area of the retina, the light-sensitive part of the eye. Despite advances in treating both diabetes and its complications, about 700,000 Americans have proliferative diabetic retinopathy and 63,000 new cases develop each year.
Each patient’s eyes were randomly assigned to receive either a laser treatment (photocoagulation) for diabetic macular edema or an injection (1 or 4 milligrams) of triamcinolone acetonide directly into the eye as often as every four months.
There was some evidence that steroids could improve vision outcomes from diabetic macular edema (DME), swelling of the center of the retina, the part of the retina used for reading or driving. Study results showed that steroids were not superior to laser treatments for DME.
“The primary objective of the study was to determine if steroids were superior to laser for DME, and if so, to balance that superiority with steroids’ side effects. A secondary objective was to determine if the steroids affected the progression of diabetic retinopathy,” adds Bressler. “Steroid treatments did reduce the risk of progression of diabetic retinopathy, but, not DME, which can also cause vision loss from proliferative diabetic retinopathy, bleeding in the middle cavity of the eye or scarring of the retina, which can detach the retina from the back wall of the eye.”
The steroid injections were not superior to laser with respect to increasing the chance of improved vision and decreasing the chance of vision loss, the primary objective of a study reported in 2008. “However, there was evidence that steroids can affect the pathways that lead to the development of new blood vessels on the surface of the retina in diabetes, a secondary objective of the study” says Bressler. “Controlling blood glucose levels can help prevent the development of retinopathy and laser treatments can reduce the risk of vision loss, but the identification of other treatments remains important.“
Bressler and colleagues, in the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research (DRCR) Network, discovered that after two years, retinopathy had progressed in 31 percent of 330 eyes treated with laser treatment, 29 percent of 256 eyes treated with 1-milligram doses of triamcinolone acetonide, and 21 percent of 254 eyes treated with 4-milligram doses. The differences appeared to be sustained at three years, even though most eyes in the triamcinolone groups did not receive injections every four months during the second year and less than half received any injections in the third year because there no longer was macular edema, or less commonly, because side effects from the injections precluded applying additional steroids when following the study’s treatment protocol.
Bressler says the study suggests that corticosteroids interfere with the creation of new blood vessels by reducing the production of compounds that spur their growth and cautions that steroids are also associated with other eye diseases. “Researchers now need to find ways of using the steroid effect on these blood vessels for treatment, but, not at the expense of causing glaucoma and the side effects of cataract formation or worsening of cataracts which could lead to the need for a patient to undergo cataract surgery.”
Other investigators who authored the study for the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network include Allison R. Edwards, M.S., Roy W. Beck, M.D., Ph.D., Christina J. Flaxel, M.D., Adam R. Glassman, M.S., Michael S. Ip, M.D., Craig Kollman, Ph.D., Baruch D. Kuppermann, M.D., and Thomas W. Stone, M.D.
The study was supported through a cooperative agreement from the National Eye Institute and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health, part of the Department of Health and Human Services. Allergan Inc. provided the preservative-free triamcinolone acetonide and topical antibiotics as requested by the DRCR Network and unrestricted funds to the DRCR Network. Following the Network’s Industry Collaboration Guidelines to maintain academic integrity, the DRCR Network had complete control over the design of the protocol, ownership of the data and all editorial content of presentation and publications related to the protocol.
If you want to have your eyesight for the entire span of your lives, there are many ways we can make sure we are practicing proper eye care. Below a few tips to help you make sure your eye care regime is doing what it needs to do.
Protect your Eyes from the Sun’s Untraviolet Rays Make sure you are providing your eyes with the proper protection from the sun’s ultraviolet rays. Good eye care dictates that you make sure to wear glasses or contacts that are blocking out as much of the harmful rays as possible. Your choice of eyewear may include sunglasses, contact lenses, or clipons if you wear prescription eyeglasses. Do not make the mistake of thinking you can go without some sort of protection just because the day is not sunny and bright. We are constantly being bombarded with ultraviolet rays when out of doors, even in cloudy or rainy weather.
Another great way to promote proper eye care in your daily routine is to wear some sort of headgear when in the sun. Whether you choose a wide brimmed hat or a simple baseball cap, the brim will help provide the protection you need. While not considered a great fashion accessory in all situations, wear a hat with some sort of a brim outside whenever possible.
Smoking is bad for your Eyes If you do not smoke, do not start. If you do smoke, consider that proper eye care is yet another good reason to quit. Just as tobacco has an adverse effect on a number of body organs, they also can cause problems with the proper functioning of the eyes. In addition to the damage smoking can do to you internally, the smoke itself can irritate and over time cause damage to the surface of the eye.
Drinking Alcohol in excess is bad for your Eyes Alcohol, while not something to completely avoid, should be consumed in moderation. Some physicians suggest that as part of your eye care program, do not consume more than a few drinks a week. While alcohol can have some positive benefits for the body, too much of a good thing can lead to permanent damage, even to your eyes.
Fruits and Vegetable are good for your Eyes A solid eye care regime also includes watching how you eat. Make sure you are getting plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet. Many vegetables are an excellent source of beta-carotene, considered by many to an essential mineral for strong eyes. A few suggestions of vegetables to include in your diet are broccoli, green peas, and any type of lettuce. Spinach is another good source of nutrients for proper eye care. Green leafy vegetables that many of us love to eat cooked, such as collards, turnip greens, and kale also fill the bill.
Fatty Foods are Bad for your Eyes Good eye care also promotes limiting foods that are high in saturated fats and cholesterol. If you enjoy chicken, remove the skin before cooking. Stay away from fatty foods as much as possible and focus more on lean meats. Just as with vegetables, some meats contain vitamins and nutrients that help promote eye care. Some examples are liver, seafood, and lean ground beef.
Practicing responsible eye care does not have to be a hard task. Much of what you should eat will benefit your overall health, as well as promoting good eyes. Do yourself a favor, and eat well even as you use proper protection to ensure the best possible health for your eyes.
Eye Care Associates Offers Exclusive Carolina Blue Ray-Ban Wayfarers
RALEIGH, N.C. — earching for that unique Carolina gift or stocking stuffer for the Tar Heel fan on your holiday list? As North Carolina fans gear up for their bid to the Meineke Car Care Bowl, Eye Care Associates, a leading multi-site practice offering comprehensive eye health care throughout the Triangle, Sandhills, Burlington and Wilmington, is proud to offer limited edition Carolina Blue Ray-Ban Wayfarers. Thanks to an exclusive arrangement with Ray-Ban, fans and Bowl attendees alike have the opportunity to own a unique piece of fan gear. These limited edition sunglasses are available at each office location as well as online at www.EyeCareAssociatesNC.com/blue.
A slightly smaller interpretation on the most famous style in sunwear, the iconic Wayfarer is immediately recognizable anywhere in the world. This updated frame adds a new level of playfulness to the iconic shape. The Ray-Ban signature logo is displayed on sculpted temples. The new Wayfarer flaunts a softer eye shape than the original and the Tar Heel Blue color add a unique flair of individuality. A contemporary update of a timeless icon, these limited edition Carolina Blue Ray-Ban Wayfarers typically retail for over $100, but are on sale now for just $75. For further customization, prescriptions sunglass lenses are also available at any Eye Care Associates office location.
“We are excited to contribute to the esteemed Carolina tradition and spirit.” said Dr. Stephen Bolick, CEO and Founder of Eye Care Associates and a University of North Carolina Alumnus. “As an active member in our community, we wanted to offer something exclusively for Tar Heel fans that are stylish and practical.”
The Tar Heel Football Team will face the Pittsburgh Panthers in the Meineke Car Care Bowl on December 26, 2009 at the Bank of America stadium in Charlotte.
For more information on Eye Care Associates, please call 888-863-20/10 or visit www.EyeCareAssociatesNC.com.
About Eye Care Associates Established in 1978 by Dr. Stephen Bolick, Eye Care Associates, O.D.P.A., is a multi-site optometric practice with 24 doctors. Eye Care Associates has been a market leader in the Triangle for more than three decades providing comprehensive eye exams, treatment for eye injuries, glaucoma and cataract care, distinctive eyewear, contact lenses, senior and pediatric vision care, and premium sunglasses. The practice has grown from a single office in Raleigh to a network of 18 locations found throughout the Triangle, Sandhills, in Wilmington and Burlington. Eye Care Associates proudly supports its local community through a variety of charitable outreach programs. Eye Care Associates also serves as the Official and Exclusive Eye Care Provider of the Carolina Hurricanes. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call (919) 863-2020 or visit www.EyeCareAssociatesNC.com.
Paradigm Medical Announces the Introduction of the Paravue 300 and Surveyor 500 at 2009 American Academy of Ophthalmology in San Francisco
Paradigm Medical Industries, Inc. announced today that it introduced two new products at the annual American Academy of Ophthalmology Meeting in San Francisco from October 24-27, 2009. The new products consisted of the Paravue 300, a corneal topographer, and the Surveyor 500, a fully capable corneal topographer with a Scheimpflug technology rotating camera for the measurement of interior ocular structures in the anterior segment.
These are the first two products Paradigm is introducing from its Italian partner, Costruzione Strumenti Oftalmici (C.S.O.), with additional products scheduled for 2010. The Paravue 300 and Surveyor 500 fill a gap created by an earlier decision to discontinue manufacturing the CT 200 (corneal topographer), which was outdated.
“The AAO attendees response to the Paravue 300 and Surveyor 500 was very impressive and will serve as a springboard for Paradigm to continue to develop, locate and introduce new and innovative products to the ophthalmic marketplace,” said Stephen Davis, Paradigm President and CEO.
Paradigm Medical also announced the relocation of its corporate office to 4273 South 590 West, Salt Lake City, Utah 84123. All phone numbers will remain the same. “This move will provide Paradigm with a more suitable facility that meets its current manufacturing and operational needs and reduces its overhead cost,” said Mr. Davis.
About Paradigm Medical Industries, Inc. Headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, Paradigm Medical Industries, Inc. is a medical device company that develops, manufactures and distributes ophthalmic diagnostic instruments and related products for early glaucoma detection and other eye disorders. Paradigm has the only patented technology utilizing photon laser for cataract removal. The Company is poised to capture a niche market within the glaucoma and ultrasound microscopy fields. Paradigm Medical Industries markets its products to ophthalmologists, optometrists, universities, and clinics throughout the United States, as well as internationally.
This press release contains statements that, if not verifiable historic fact, may be viewed as forward-looking statements that could predict future events and outcomes with respect to Paradigm and its business. The predictions embodied in these statements will involve risk and uncertainties and, accordingly, actual results may differ significantly from the results discussed or implied in such forward-looking statements.
For more information, please visit: www.paradigm-medical.com
Contact:
Paradigm Medical Industries, Inc.
Stephen Davis
President and CEO
801-977-8970
Diabetic Eye Disease to Increase as More Young People Are Diagnosed With Diabetes American Academy of Ophthalmology’s EyeSmart EyeCommitted Campaign Seeks to Reduce Largest Cause of Preventable Blindness Among Working-Age Americans
SAN FRANCISCO, CA– The incidence of diabetes continues to increase, particularly among adolescents and young adults. The CDC projects the number of diabetic retinopathy cases will double by 2050. On World Diabetes Day, November 14, the American Academy of Ophthalmology (Academy), through its EyeSmart™ campaign, is reminding the public that an annual dilated eye exam can help prevent vision loss in people with diabetes. To promote awareness of the need for an annual eye exam, the Academy, along with its partners the American Society of Retina Specialists, the Macula Society and the Retina Society, has launched EyeSmart EyeCommitted, a social media campaign to encourage people with diabetes to pledge to get an annual eye exam.
“As ophthalmologists, we are concerned that the increase in Type 2 diabetes cases at younger ages could mean people may be facing vision-threatening eye disease in the prime of their lives,” said David W. Parke II, MD, executive vice president and CEO of the Academy. “That is why we’re urging people with diabetes to get EyeCommitted. By taking charge of their eye health, Americans can greatly reduce their risk of losing their sight from diabetes.”
The EyeCommitted campaign, which is promoted through social media channels, includes an interactive pledge application that:
– Encourages visitors to take the EyeCommitted pledge to have an annual diabetic eye exam;
– Allows users to share the pledge and campaign information with friends and family;
– Features important diabetic eye disease information and a new video that tells the compelling stories of two patients with diabetic retinopathy; and,
– Allows users to post the application onto their preferred social media sites.
For each pledge, the Academy will commit another $1 to its diabetic eye health education efforts.
Detailed information about diabetic eye disease is also available on the EyeSmart Web site.
The EyeCommitted campaign comes at a time when there is a documented rise in Type 2 diabetes rates among Americans, particularly among the young. An estimated 23.6 million Americans have Type 2 diabetes, but nearly one quarter are unaware of it. African-Americans and people of Hispanic heritage are more likely to have diabetes.
“Once they are diagnosed, people with diabetes will have to manage their eye health closely for decades, including through their peak work years,” said Abdhish R. Bhavsar, MD, Director of Clinical Research at the Retina Center of Minnesota and an attending surgeon at the Phillips Eye Institute in Minneapolis. “That’s why it is critical for people with Type 2 diabetes to get an eye exam as soon after their diagnosis as possible and then annually thereafter.” For people with Type 1 diabetes, also known as juvenile diabetes, the Academy recommends that the first dilated eye exam should take place within three to five years of initial diagnosis and then annually thereafter.
About the American Academy of Ophthalmology AAO is the world’s largest association of eye physicians and surgeons — Eye M.D.s — with more than 27,000 members worldwide. Eye health care is provided by the three “O’s” — opticians, optometrists and ophthalmologists. It is the ophthalmologist, or Eye M.D., who can treat it all: eye diseases and injuries, and perform eye surgery. For more information, visit the Academy’s Web site at www.aao.org.
Contact:
Media Relations
(415) 561-8534
media@aao.org
A research team has found that laser eye surgery that corrects vision does not lead to later problems with the Laser eye surgery has no long-term effects on cornea.
Two types of laser surgery: photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) and laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) are often used to correct refractive errors such as nearsightedness.
However, little is known about how these procedures affect the cornea, the transparent membrane covering the eye, on the cellular level over the long term.
Sanjay V. Patel, M.D., and William M. Bourne, M.D., of Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn., studied 29 eyes of 16 patients who had undergone LASIK or PRK. Photographs of the cells lining the cornea (endothelial cells) were taken and analysed before and nine years after surgery.
The annual rate of corneal endothelial cell loss in the eyes of patients who had had surgery was compared with those of 42 eyes that had not undergone either procedure.
Nine years after surgery, the density of cells lining the cornea had decreased by 5.3 percent from their preoperative state.
However, the average annual rate of cell loss (0.6 percent) was the same in corneas of eyes that were operated on and those that were not.
“Our results support the findings of numerous short-term studies that found no significant endothelial cell loss after LASIK and PRK,” the authors said.
They added: “The importance of the findings in our study relates to using corneas that have undergone LASIK or PRK as donor tissue.”
The study has been reported in the November issue of Archives of Ophthalmology , one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Dr. Michelle Lewis Joins Koch Eye Associates in Rhode Island Koch Eye Associates with offices in Warwick, Providence, Johnston, East Providence, North Kingston and Woonsocket Rhode Island is pleased to announce that Optometrist Dr. Michelle Lewis has joined the professional eye care eye care staff at their practice.
Warwick, R.I. — Koch Eye Associates with offices in Warwick, Providence, Johnston, East Providence, North Kingston and Woonsocket Rhode Island is pleased to announce that Optometrist Dr. Michelle Lewis (http://www.kocheye.com/staff/lewis.htm) has joined the professional eye care eye care staff at their practice. Paul Koch, M.D., Founder and Medical Director of Koch Eye Associates commented, “Dr. Lewis is a welcome addition to Koch Eye (http://www.kocheye.com) and to our Johnston office to help us to bring world class eye care to Rhode Island patients.”
A Rhode Island native, Dr. Lewis is a graduate of Rhode Island College in Providence, Rhode Island. She received her Doctor of Optometry from the New England College of Optometry in Boston, Massachusetts and completed an extensive externship program with honors at the Newport Naval Base in Newport, Rhode Island, the Providence V.A. Hospital, Dimock Community Health Care Center and the New England Eye Institute.
Prior to joining Koch Eye Associates in October 2009, Michelle Lewis, O.D. spent 10 years as an eye doctor in practice in the Attleboro, Massachusetts. At Koch Eye Associates, Dr. Lewis will provide the full scope of primary care optometry including general eye care and eye exams, contact lens fitting and examinations for all types of contact lenses such as spherical, astigmatism correcting toric, bifocal and multifocal contact lenses, dry eye care, pediatric eye care, anterior segment disease and therapeutic management as well as pre- and post-operative co-managed care of LASIK Laser Eye Surgery (http://www.seewithlasik.com) and Cataract Surgery (http://www.aboutcataractsurgery.com) patients.
Koch Eye Associates is a leading Rhode Island eye care practice staffed by a team of Ophthalmologists and Optometrists who provide eye examinations for adults and children, cataract surgery and lens implants, laser vision correction such as LASIK, care for diseases of the retina including diabetes and age related macular degeneration and diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma as well as contact lenses and eyeglasses.
For additional information, contact:
Peter Koch, Chief Executive Officer Koch Eye Associates 566 Tollgate Road
Warwick, Rhode Island 02886
1.800.KOCHEYE (1.800.562.4393) or visit www.kocheye.com
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