Samuel Boles

What You Should Know: Emergency Eye Care

February 20, 2022 by Anne Arundel Eye Center

An eye emergency constitutes an event that puts your eyesight at risk. Any such event requires immediate professional treatment to prevent permanent vision loss. Examples of eye emergencies include:

Loss of Vision: If you experience any form of vision loss, even if you are not experiencing pain, contact your eye doctor immediately. In fact, loss of vision is one of the most significant indicators of an eye emergency. Lack of pain in no way diminishes the seriousness of the situation.

Torn or Cut Eyelid: If you experience a cut or torn eyelid, apply gentle pressure with a clean, dry cloth until the bleeding subsides. Then rinse the area with water, cover with a clean bandage, apply a cold compress over the bandage to reduce pain and swelling, and seek medical help immediately.

Scratched Eye: If any direct damage occurs to your eyeball, DO NOT apply any pressure to stop the bleeding. Gently place a cold compress over the affected eye to reduce swelling and help control any bleeding and seek medical help immediately.

Protruding Eye: Any bulging of a single eye, especially in children, is a very serious sign and requires immediate professional attention. Contact your eye doctor immediately.

Foreign Object Under the Eyelid: First of all, DO NOT rub your eye if something becomes stuck under your eyelid. Try to wash it out with water. If that does not work, contact your eye doctor immediately.

Chemicals in the Eye: If any chemicals come into contact with your eye, immediately flush the eye with cool tap water. Turn your head to the side, with the affected eye facing down. Hold the eyelid open and allow the water to run over the eye. Do this for 15 minutes. After flushing the eye, seek immediate medical attention.

Foreign Object Embedded in the Eye: First and foremost, as hard as it may be to resist, DO NOT try to remove the object or apply pressure to the eye. Leave the object in place and bandage the eye. Then cover the healthy eye with a clean cloth or gauze and seek immediate medical attention.

There is a general theme when it comes to eye emergencies; if you experience an eye emergency, seek immediate medical attention and contact your eye doctor – ophthalmologist or optometrist – right away. If you are unable to reach your eye care physician, have a family member or friend drive you to the nearest emergency room. And remember the following advise.

•DO NOT rub your eye.

•DO NOT attempt to remove a foreign object that is in contact with the cornea or that is embedded in the eye.

•DO NOT use dry cotton or sharp objects on the eye.

•DO NOT contaminate a burn. Avoid breathing on the affected area.

If you have any questions about what you have just read or if you would like to learn more about AAEC’s Emergency Eye Care Services, please contact board certified ophthalmologist Samuel Boles and the eye care specialists at Anne Arundel Eye Center by calling 410-224-2010.

Located in Annapolis, Maryland, the Anne Arundel Eye Center offers comprehensive specialized 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.

Sources:

Emergency Eye Care ClearVue.org

Flashers and Floaters in the Eye: What are They and What do They Mean?

November 22, 2018 by Anne Arundel Eye Center

As we age, the eye’s gel-like vitreous begins to dissolve and liquefy, creating a watery center. Occasionally some un-dissolved vitreous particles will float around the now watery center, appearing as spots or what we refer to as floaters.

Floaters in the eye are a fairly common, harmless apparition that will generally fade away in time. Yet, while these floaters are typically common, they can be the first signs of a more serious medical condition, such as retinal detachment.

If you ever see a shower of floaters (spots) accompanied by flashes of light (photopsia), then you should seek immediate medical attention. The sudden and dramatic appearance of these symptoms could indicate that the retina is either tearing or detaching.

Retinal detachments and retinal tears are both emergency conditions that require immediate medical attention. An eye surgeon must reattach or repair the retina to prevent permanent vision loss from occurring.

So if you see floaters in your eye, schedule an appointment with your eye doctor – optometrist or ophthalmologist – at your earliest convenience. Any change in your sight is a serious medical condition that requires prompt attention. If these symptoms appear rapidly and include flashes of light, call your eye doctor right away.

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 comprehensive specialized 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:

Eye Floaters, Flashes and Spots

Corneal Disease: Explanation, Symptoms, and Treatment

October 10, 2017 by Anne Arundel Eye Center

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:

Your Cornea: Conditions, Symptoms and Treatments

The Signs and Symptoms of Nuclear Cataracts :: Cataracts Awareness Month

June 21, 2012 by Anne Arundel Eye Center

There are several types of cataracts, each affecting vision in its own distinct manner. Last week, we outlined the Warning Signs of Subcapsular Cataracts. This week, we are going to address a different type of cataract, the Nuclear Cataract.

What is a Nuclear Cataract?

A nuclear cataract is the most common type of cataract, beginning with a gradual hardening and yellowing of the central zone of the lens, also known as the nucleus. Over time, this hardening and yellowing will expand to the other layers of the lens.

What Causes a Nuclear Cataract?

Nuclear cataracts typically develop as the result of aging. This is why a nuclear cataract is sometimes referred to as an age-related nuclear (ARN) cataract.

Signs and Symptoms of Nuclear Cataracts

Nuclear cataracts result in the hardening and yellowing of the nucleus of the lens.
Nuclear cataracts cause light to scatter when it passes through the lens, decreasing the amount of light that reaches the retina.
When a nuclear cataract first develops, it can bring about a temporary improvement in your near vision, called “second sight.”
Nuclear cataracts interfere with a person’s ability to see objects in the distance.
Nuclear cataracts may make it more difficult to drive at night.
Nuclear cataracts can result in the loss of color discrimination ability.
Nuclear cataracts can result in monocular diplopia, which is double vision in only one eye.
Nuclear cataracts may induce other eye problems, such as myopia.

If left untreated, these symptoms will increase in severity, eventually leading to severe vision loss that can only be restored through surgery.

If you feel you may be experiencing any of the above symptoms, schedule an appointment with your eye doctor as soon as possible. Any sudden change in your vision is a serious medical condition that requires prompt medical attention from your optometrist or ophthalmologist.

A consultation with an experienced and knowledgeable Ophthalmologist will help determine if you have cataracts and, if necessary, guide you through your cataract treatment options.

To learn more about Nuclear Cataracts and Proper Eye Health, please contact board certified ophthalmologist Dr. Samuel Boles, consultative optometrist Dr. Nathan Frank, and the eye care specialists at Anne Arundel Eye Center by calling 410-224-2010 or by contacting us.

Vision problems may be a natural part of aging. Losing your vision doesn’t have to be.

For more eye care advice and information, please take a look at our previous blog posts.

You can also follow Anne Arundel Eye Center on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube!

Sources:

Cataract Types

June is Cataract Awareness Month :: Cataracts Symptoms and Treatment

May 31, 2012 by Anne Arundel Eye Center

As we age, our eyes undergo natural wear and tear, resulting in the clouding of the eye’s natural lens. This clouding is known as cataracts. This is a normal part of the aging process. If we live long enough, we will all develop cataracts at some point in our lives.

“I like to compare it to the clear plastic window in the back of a convertible car,” said board certified ophthalmologist Samuel Boles, M.D. “After years of exposure to sun and weather, the plastic becomes yellow and cloudy.”

Interesting Facts about Cataracts

Cataracts are the leading cause of vision loss among adults 55 and older.
Nearly half of all adults will develop cataracts by age 80.
Acquired cataracts account for over 99% of all cataracts. Congenital cataracts account for less than 1%.
Cataracts surgery is the most frequently performed surgery in the United States.

Types of Cataracts

Subcapsular Cataracts: This type of cataract begins at the back of the lens.
Nuclear Cataracts: This type of cataract forms in the nucleus, the center of the lens, and develops due to natural aging changes.
Cortical Cataracts: This type of cataract forms in the lens cortex and gradually extends its spokes from the outside of the lens to the center.

The type of cataract you have will affect exactly which signs and symptoms you experience and how soon they will occur. Still, there is no need to worry; cataracts are very treatable and can be detected long before the lens becomes cloudy.

Signs and Symptoms of Cataracts

Blurry sight, and occasionally, double vision
‘Halos’ — the eyes become dazzled by bright light, making night driving difficult
Colors may become faded
Eyeglasses prescription changes frequently

Cataract Treatment

If the symptoms of cataracts persist and become bothersome, surgery is an excellent option for most people.

Cataract surgery involves removing the clouded lens and, in most cases, replacing it with a clear, intraocular lens implant (IOL). Cataract surgery is a painless outpatient procedure and has the highest success rate of any surgery practiced today. Most patients can resume their normal, everyday function in very little time and can even drive a few days after surgery.

More Information on Intraocular Lenses (IOL)

Previously, Intraocular lenses (IOL) only allowed for vision at one distance (mono-focal lenses), meaning cataract patients still benefit from glasses after surgery. Newer advanced technology IOLs, however, allow for a much greater range of vision, further decreasing the patient’s dependence on glasses.

Advanced technology lenses, also referred to as Premium IOLs, available include: Multi-focal, Accommodating, and Dual-Optic Accommodating. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages, including some out of pocket expenses. To find out which lens makes the most sense for you, consult your eye doctor.

A consultation with an experienced and knowledgeable Ophthalmologist will help guide you through your decision. You may find out that a particular lens suits your needs very well.

To learn more about Cataracts, Intraocular Lenses, and Proper Eye Health, please contact board certified ophthalmologist Dr. Samuel Boles, consultative optometrist Dr. Nathan Frank, and the eye care specialists at Anne Arundel Eye Center by calling 410-224-2010 or click here to visit AnneArundelEyeCenter.com.

Vision problems may be a natural part of aging. Losing your vision doesn’t have to be.

For more eye care advice and information, please take a look at our previous blog posts.

You can also follow Anne Arundel Eye Center on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and YouTube as well!

Sources:

Learn About Cataracts: Facts, Stats, and FAQs