Macular Degeneration Research Findings
Glaucoma and cataracts get all the news when it comes to visual impairment and blindness. That being said, attention needs to be paid to macular degeneration, since 11 million people in the U.S. and 200 million people worldwide have the disease. It is the leading cause of blindness in those age 65 and over. Researchers […]
How to Reduce Resistance to Care
Repeat after me: • If you are between the ages of 20 and 64, even if you don’t have any underlying health issues, you need to have an eye exam every two years. • If you are age 65 or older, you need an eye exam every year. • If you have diabetes or a […]
Complicated Patients
Optometry is an attractive profession in many ways. First of all, the focus of an optometrist’s career is treating the eye, one of the coolest organs in the body. Also, optometry allows practitioners to have the option of being small business owners. Even though there are many positives, more often than not, complicated patients can […]
Slowing the Increase in Myopia
Myopia is the Rodney Dangerfield* of vision conditions. Unlike glaucoma or macular degeneration, myopia isn’t ‘given respect’ because the majority of treatments don’t involve surgery. Most of the time, either eyeglasses or contact lenses do the trick. If a person is fed up with glasses or contact lenses, there’s vision correction surgery (e.g., LASIK). The […]
Low Vision & Depression
It is no secret that a greater number of people are experiencing low vision from conditions, such as macular degeneration, glaucoma and cataracts. While these conditions don’t lead to sudden vision loss, they do take their toll. In addition to reduction of mobility and difficulty with near work activities (e.g., reading) vision limiting conditions can […]
Corporate vs Independent Optometry
A great thing about optometry is that doctors have different career options. They can work in academia, at a corporate or privately owned practice as an employee, or as an independent practice owner. Since most optometrists work in some type of practice, this blog entry will focus on working as a corporate employee versus being […]
Stem Cell Secretions & Restoration of Sight
Studies are taking place around the world on the use of stem cells to treat many conditions and diseases. In particular, they are being studied as a treatment for restoring vision. Stem cells have the potential to protect the optic nerve from damage and slow vision loss, as well as possibly replace ocular tissue that […]
Calling Dr. Internet
The Internet is good for many things. From finding a movie that you can’t remember the title of to helping elementary school students do research for their reports, search engines put information at a person’s fingertips. The Internet can also help people understand more about certain health conditions, such as cancer or diabetes. People are […]
Make Sure Patients Choose You, Not An App
Smartphone apps are so cool. There’s an app for ICD9/10 codes. There’s an app for contact lens calculations. There’s an app that can turn your smartphone into an ophthalmoscope! There’s also an app that will allow people to have their eyes examined for refractive error. This is where apps stop looking so cool. While having […]
Rephrase the Jargon for Greater Comprehension
Recently, we were approached by a doctor at the 2016 American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) conference with a request to create a model that would explain the causes of dry eye, as well as how it is diagnosed and treated. You can learn more about the model here. Of course, the medical […]