Happy New Year to all our friends and patients!  We’d like to thank you all for your support and business throughout 2011. 

To ring in the new year, we are offering some specials at our Bluffton & Plaza @ Shelter Cove locations.  Be sure to ask about them when you call for an appointment. 

While resolutions are mostly made to be broken, good health, including your eyes, should always be a priority.  Schedule an appointment with any of our doctors to have a complete, dilated ocular exam.  Healthy eyes often correlate with a healthy body! 

In mid-January we will be again taking part in the Chamber’s Business Expo at the Westin.  Stop by our booth to say hello and check out our goodies.  Its always a great event.  We love to see our friends and make new ones, as well as answer any questions regarding your eyes. 

We here at Optical Solutions wish the best for you in 2012 and you can be sure we will be here to make sure if anything “looks” funny.  All our best!

At least several times per week, we see patients who report a sudden onset of flashes or floaters in their vision.   Many come in very worried as they’ve researched it on the internet and are know the worst outcome is a  retinal detatchment.  Their fear is etched in truth- its the end result we worry about as well.

A recent report in the New York Times states that “modern treatments can do wonders if they are begun before damage become irreversible”. 

The first thing we check is the vision.  If that is good, we’re somewhat more optimistic that the problem is not a detatchment.  We then dilate the eye to look in the back.  The problem can be in the vitreous- a posterior vitreous detatchment can  have similar symptoms.  Our focus is to look around the entire retina, to ensure that it is healthy, without any tearing or holes.  If we see any signs we don’t like, we send our patients directly to a retinal specialist to have it reviewed and lasered if necessary.  

The key in all of this is to not ignore signs.  Changes in vision are usually telling you something- notably, get to the eye doctor.  The earlier we see it and get it treated, the increased likelihood you have of retaining one of your most treasured assets!

That’s todays Optical Solution!

This may not be as far fetched as it seems!

A doctor in Laguna Beach, Ca,  has created a laser that he says can turn your brown eyes blue.   Dr. Gregg Homer say his laser energy is absorbed by the brown pigment on the iris.  Within a couple of weeks, the pigment tissue changes and the body gets rid of it, leaving only the blue iris crypts behind. 

He says the procedure will be available in the US within the next 3 years and cost around $5,000.

In the meantime, we will continue to make sure that no matter what color your eyes are,  they’ll be happy and healthy for as long as you need them!  That’s today’s Optical Solution.

Every year, after Halloween, we see patients with an eye infection from buying their holiday contact lenses on the internet.  Even with all of the controls over contact lens sales, people were still able to buy them without seeing an eye doctor.

This year we are happy to do a contact lense fitting (if you don’t already have them), and we’ve teamed up with a company who provides over 2 dozen different types of Halloween Lenses- everything from Angelic Red to Creepers are available.  

So if you have a contact lens Rx already- come see what we have to offer for Halloween.  If not, we’ll be happy to do a fitting and you can order whatever you like.  You’ll be the life of the party from having the coolest pair of lenses to compliment your ”Spooktacular” outfit!

That’s today’s Optical Solution….

A big part of our job as primary eyecare doctors is monitoring our patients eye health.   With a population of people getting older, and healthier, a big push has been put on supplements in the past several years. 

More recently, more companies have been coming out with new vitamin products targeting ocular health.  We think this is a very important aspect of long-term vision. 

I often recommend several types of supplements that are eye specific but I also tell my patients, who may already be taking several pills per day, to compare the eye-specific vitamins to their current multi-vitamin.  If they contain the same supplements great, if not they can find a different multi-vitamin that contains more of the supplements they need for their eyes.

Its another way we make Optical Solutions work for you!

When babies are first born their vision is not fully developed. In fact, up until about 3 months of age babies’ eyes can only focus on objects that are about 8 to 10 inches from their face. Stimulation of the visual system during their first years of life is critical to normal visual development. At first babies are attracted to high contrast targets but have difficulty moving their eyes between the two images. For the first two to three months of life infants have difficulty using their eyes together as a team; because of this their eyes may appear to be crossed or wander. Infants should begin to follow moving objects with their eyes around 3 months of age. The ability to judge depth perception and color vision begins development around 5 months of age. Some studies have shown that visual development continues up to 7 years of age! It is especially important to get your child’s eyes examined early during this critical period of vision development. Below are some basic signs to look for eye and vision problems in your child.
Excessive tearing – this may indicate blocked tear ducts
Red or encrusted eye lids – this could be a sign of an eye infection
Constant eye turning – this may signal a problem with eye muscle control, and can cause abnormal vision development even a lazy eye.
Extreme sensitivity to light – this may indicate an elevated pressure in the eye; the eye may also appear ‘cloudy’ and red.
Appearance of a white pupil – this may indicate the presence of an eye cancer

http://www.aoa.org

The appearance of any of these signs should require immediate attention by your pediatrician or optometrist. And that’s today’s optical solution.

If you follow the U.S. Open Tennis- and who doesn’t in Hilton Head- you probably know that Venus Williams withdrew last week after being diagnosed with Sjogren’s Syndrome. 

This auto-immune syndrome effects some 4 million Americans, decreasing  energy levels, causing fatigue, and joint pain.  It also can have a severe effect on vision.  Dry eye is the most common visual effect, but if left untreated it can severely effect the eyes. 

A regular exam and systemic review, something we always do here at Optical Solutions, is a great way to help with these symptoms.  Dry eye is a problem for many people, and we here at Optical Solutions are well trained in finding the best solution to help with the comfort of your eyes.   Talk with us anytime about any dryness you may experience. 

Hopefully, Ms. Williams will quickly return to tennis.  

That’s today’s Optical Solution…

For many parents, finding out your child can’t see is an indictment of “bad parenting”.  I’m here to tell you that’s not the case.  Because kids have always seen the way they see, they often don’t know they can’t see until your favorite eye doctor puts lenses infront of them.  Then a whole new world opens up!! 

The doctors and staff here at Optical Solutions spend hours of our time every year going to local schools to screen kids and look for visual defects.  While these screenings don’t take place over a full, dilated eye exam, we are able to spot signs we’re trained to look for and recommend follow up when we feel its necessary. 

Just like you, we’re parents too and we look at these kids as we would our own!  We want to make sure their vision allows them to enjoy all the things our wonderful area has to offer.   So any time you have any questions at all, be on the safe side and bring them in for an exam.  You’ll be glad you did!!

That’s today’s Optical Solution…

We’ve all seen the commercials or ads, “see great at both distance and near.”  Its an enticing proposal, especially for people who are having that problem- Presbyopes.  Presbyopia is the inability to focus at near. 

If you think about a camera, we used to have to press down the button half-way to get the fine focus for the extra clarity.    The lens in the eye does that in our vision.  Problem is, it ceases to work after about 40 years- hence, Presybopia. 

Multi-focal lenses strive to fix that problem for contact lens patients.  They are based on concentric circles within the lens that allow your eyes to use different powers depending on the size of your pupil.  The problem for many people  their pupil size doesn’t always correspond to the perfect power for the distance they need. 

Here at Optical Solutions, we use a variety of techniques to fit you in the perfect contact lens for your specific needs.  We’ll do everything we can to give you the best vision at distance, intermediate, and near.  Make sure you ask us if you would like contact lenses.  We take the time to do it right everytime.

And that’s today’s Optical Solution…

Studies have shown that diet can actually have a significant affect on eye health.  Certain vitamins and minerals have been found to protect different structures of the eye, including the retina, lens and cornea.  Below are a few nutritional keys in keeping your eyes in tiptop shape!

Lutein and zeaxanthin are two antioxidants that are naturally found in several plants and veggies.  Lutein and zeaxanthin are antioxidants that neutralize and absorb the excess light energy to help prevent damage from harmful UV rays.  These nutrients are important to your macula, which is the area in your retina for the straight-ahead vision, and your lens inside of your eye.  Several studies have induced that Lutein and Zeaxanthin are important in prevention and slowing the progression of macular degeneration.

Foods Containing Lutein and Zeaxanthin

The best natural food sources of lutein and zeaxanthin are green leafy vegetables and other green or yellow vegetables. Among these, cooked kale and cooked spinach top the list, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).  Below are some key foods to pick up at the grocery store for healthy eyes!

Lutein and zeaxanthin are just a couple of ingredients for your eye health! And that’s today’s Optical Solution!