When you think of seeing an eye doctor, it is easy to get confused as to the differences between optometrists and ophthalmologists. While they provide some of the same services, there are also several major differences. Once you understand these differences, it’s easy to determine when you need to see an optometrist and when a visit to the ophthalmologist is in order.
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What is Dry Eye?
Dry Eye: you have heard the term before, but do you really know what it is? Dry eye is a little more complicated than it sounds and the resulting consequences go beyond simple dryness. These include pain, light sensitivity, itching, redness, and even blurry vision. So you have to ask yourself, “What is Dry Eye?”
Dry eye can be caused by a number of underlying conditions, ranging from the natural aging process to side effects of prescription drugs, structural problems with the eye lids (lid margin disease, blepharitis)and side effects of certain diseases, such as Sjogren’s syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, and other collagen vascular diseases.
If you believe you are suffering from dry eye, schedule an appointment with your eye doctor – optometrist or ophthalmologist – as soon as possible. Your eye depends on tears, a combination of water, oils, mucus, and antibodies, to provide constant moisture and lubrication in order to maintain not only comfort, but also proper vision. When there is an imbalance in the tear system, a person can experience dry eye.
Treating Dry Eye
There are several treatments currently available for dry eye, including:
- Eye Drops: Artificial tears can help keep your eyes properly lubricatedsupplimenting your natural tears. Artificial tears are available over-the-counter.
- Punctual occlusion (Temporary and Permanent): Temporary punctual occlusion involves the temporary plugging of the ducts that drain tears out of the eye. If this proves to be successful in providing an adequate supply of tears, permanent punctual occlusion may be an option. And, as you may have guessed, permanent punctual occlusion is the permanent plugging of the tear drains (though plugs can be removed by your eye doctor).
- Medication: Medications, such as Restasis, can greatly improve the quality of life for a patient with dry eye. Topical steroids may be used temporarily to bring the tear film to a healthy and stable state.
- Surgery: The ducts that drain tears into the nose can be permanently closed to allow more tears to remain around the eye.
“Patients often ask me, ‘How can my eyes be dry? They are constantly tearing,” said board certified ophthalmologist Dr. Samuel Boles. “Well, the tearing is actually your body’s response to your dry eyes.”
If you have any questions about Dry Eye or if you wish to schedule an appointment with Anne Arundel Eye Center, please contact Dr. Boles and the eye care specialists here at AAEC by calling 410-224-2010.
For more eye care advice and information, please take a look at our previous blog posts.
Source:
Dry Eyes WebMD
Cataract Surgery Post-Op Care: What Can I Expect After Surgery?
The National Eye Institute (NEI) predicts that by the year 2050, 50.2 million Americans will develop cataracts. But don’t worry. Cataracts are a normal part of the aging process, currently affecting more than 22 million Americans age 40 and older, and half of all Americans over the age of 80, according to NEI. In a healthy eye, the lens focuses “light onto the retina for clear vision” and “adjusts the eye’s focus, letting us see things clearly both up close and far away,” explains Gretchyn Bailey, editor in chief of Optometry Times. Over time, proteins begin to build up in the lens, forming protein clumps, which can obscure normal vision. These clumps, or deposits, prevent light from passing clearly through the lens, causing images to appear cloudy or blurry, especially at night.
Corneal Disease: Explanation, Symptoms, and Treatment
Your cornea – the clear, protective outer layer of the eye – not only protects your eye from dirt and germs, but also plays a key role in your vision. As light enters the eye, it is focused or refracted by the shape of the cornea. If your cornea sustains damage through disease, infection or injury, the resulting scar tissue can interfere with your vision by blocking or distorting light as it enters your eye.
There are several different conditions including infections, degenerations and other disorders that affect the cornea. These include:
Astigmatism: Caused by an irregularly shaped cornea, astigmatism is a refractive error in which the eye has trouble focusing light. Astigmatism is the most common form of corneal problem. Treatment typically involves the use of glasses or contacts.
Corneal Abrasion: Caused by trauma to the eye, a corneal abrasion refers to a scratch on the outer layer of the eye. It is the second most common form of corneal distress. Treatment traditionally involves patching of the eye, though newer bandage contact lenses are beginning to see more use. These allow people to stay functional during the healing process.
Keratits: This form of corneal disease is an inflammation of the cornea that occurs with viral, bacteria or fungal infection. Symptoms of keratitis include severe eye pain, reduced visual clarity, and discharge.
Ocular Herpes (Herpes of the Eye): Similar to cold sores on the lip, this reoccurring viral infection produces sores on the surface of the cornea that, in time, can spread deeper into the cornea and eye. There is no cure for ocular herpes, but it can often be controlled with the use of antiviral drugs. You can also try using Valtrex. Valtrex (Valacyclovir) is an antiviral medication used to treat infections caused by certain viruses. It helps the body fight infection by slowing the growth and spread of the herpes virus. It is used to treat shingles (caused by herpes zoster), genital herpes, and cold sores around the mouth. Valtrex is also a treatment for cold sores in children over the age of 12 years old and as a chickenpox medication in children who are over the age of 2 years. Read the full article here: anti-viral-meds.com
Herpes Zoster (Shingles): This is actually a recurrence of the chickenpox virus, since most of us have already had the disease. Symptoms of Herpes Zoster include blisters or lesions on the cornea, fever, and pain from inflamed nerve fibers.
Corneal Dystrophies
There are over 20 of these diseases that cause structural problems with the cornea. The most common forms include:
Keratoconus: This is a progressive disease in which the cornea thins and even changes shape, creating either mild or severe distortion (astigmatism) and nearsightedness (myopia).
Map-Dot-Fingerprint Dystrophy: As the basement membrane of the epithelium of the cornea grows irregularly, abnormalities resembling maps, dots and fingerprints form in the cornea. While this form of corneal disease is mostly painless and causes no vision loss, epithelial erosion may occur, exposing the nerves lining the cornea and causing severe eye pain.
Fuchs’ Dystrophy: Seemingly happening for no apparent reason – although you may have a genetic predisposition to the disease – Fuch’s Dystrophy involves the gradual deterioration of endothelial cells. As these cells thin, they can no longer remove water from the corneal stroma. This causes the stroma to swell and distort vision.
Lattice Dystrophy: This disease is characterized by the presence of abnormal protein fibers throughout the stroma. This can result in the clouding of the cornea and reduced vision and in rare cases, epithelial erosion.
Symptoms of Corneal Disease
The cornea has the ability to quickly repair itself after most injuries or diseases. However, more serious situations may result in a much more prolonged healing process. If this is the case, the following symptoms should serve as an immediate indicator of a deeper medical issue:
- Eye pain
- Blurred/blurry vision
- Tearing
- Redness
- Extreme sensitivity to light
- Corneal scarring
If you feel you may be experiencing any of these symptoms, schedule an appointment with your eye doctor immediately. Any sudden change in your vision is a serious medical condition that requires prompt medical attention from your optometrist or ophthalmologist.
Although corneal disease resulting from hereditary factors cannot be prevented, infectious corneal disease caused from bacteria and viruses can be avoided. You should never share eye makeup, contact solution, lens cases, and eye drops with anyone as this may increase the risk of infection.
However, if you do contract some form of corneal disease, vision can be preserved through early detection and treatment. This is just another reason why regular eye exams are so important.
If you have any questions about what you have just read, please contact board certified ophthalmologist Samuel Boles and the eye care specialists at Anne Arundel Eye Center by calling 410-224-2010.
Led by Dr. Boles, the Anne Arundel Eye Center offers complete ophthalmic exams as well as diagnostic pre and post-surgical eye care. Specializing in glaucoma and cataracts, Dr. Boles has helped restore and preserve thousands of patients’ vision.
For more eye care advice and information, please take a look at our previous blog posts.
Sources:
Can Glaucoma Be Predicted?
Currently, 2.7 million people in the United States over the age of 40 have glaucoma, one of the leading causes of irreversible vision loss in the U.S. Still, understanding and awareness of glaucoma is relatively low, according to a 2013 American Optometric Association (AOA) survey of 1,000 Americans. Key findings include: [Read more…]
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