Glaucoma is a leading cause of irreversible blindness in the United States, and it currently affects more than three million Americans. Glaucoma is an umbrella term referring to a cluster of related eye conditions that cause damage to the optic nerve, which sends visual signals from your eye to your brain. It is usually related…
Blog
Are you a candidate for cataract surgery?
Cataracts can cause your vision to become blurry, making it difficult to make out what you’re reading or seeing things from afar. Cataracts are not only dangerous, but can severely affect your quality of life. The transition from having good eyesight, even with the help of glasses and contact lenses, to blurry or cloudy vision…
Diabetic Retinopathy: Symptoms, Causes, and Treatment
Diabetic retinopathy is a vision problem that can develop in someone who has type 1 or type 2 diabetes. This complication of diabetes is caused by damage to the tiny blood vessels in the retina, which is the light-sensitive lining in the back of the eye. Retinopathy is one of the many reasons why diabetes…
What Is Glaucoma?
Glaucoma is a common eye condition and a leading cause of sight loss for people over age 60. It occurs when the optic nerve, which connects the eye to the brain, becomes damaged due to internal eye pressure. The pressure is often caused by a buildup of fluid in the front part of the eye….
What Is a Diabetic Eye Exam?
High blood sugar levels associated with diabetes can lead to a number of eye problems, primarily causing damage to the retina at the back of the eye. The retina is a thin layer of delicate tissue that lines the inside of the eye. It contains millions of light-sensitive cells and nerve cells that receive, organize,…
Things to know before undergoing a diabetic eye exam
Diabetes can cause damage to blood vessels throughout the body. You’re probably familiar with diabetic foot – which is a result of vessel damage leading to diabetic neuropathy, causing foot numbness and sores – but diabetes can also lead to eye problems such as diabetic retinopathy. This tends to cause blurriness, difficulty distinguishing colors, and…
What to Expect from Cataract Surgery
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an estimated 20.5 million Americans over 40 years old have a cataract in either or both eyes. It is the leading cause of vision loss in the United States and worldwide. A cataract is a common eye condition that is directly associated with the aging…
Healthy Tips from an Eye Doctor
We have five basic senses – sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste – and each is important. However, out of the five, your sense of sight is the one that can affect your life the most noticeably if it were decreased or lost. For this reason, keeping your eyes healthy should be a top priority….
Eye Exams and the Importance of Eye Care
Annual exams are preventive exams that can help catch any health problems which may not be symptomatic or severe yet. There is one annual exam that is often overlooked, and that is the eye exam. When you think about eye exams, you may assume that it’s only for people who need glasses, but in fact,…
Reasons to Visit an Ophthalmologist
A recent survey found that only half of all Americans visit an eye doctor on a regular basis. There are two main types of eye doctors: ophthalmologists and optometrists. Whereas optometrists can diagnose and treat eye conditions and can prescribe glasses or contacts, ophthalmologists went to medical school and can perform eye surgery. An ophthalmologist…