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Our services include:

Comprehensive Eye Exams

We provide comprehensive eye care to patients of all ages. Our services include not only laser vision correction and small-incision cataract surgery but also treatments for a range of conditions such as glaucoma, the diabetic eye, dry eye and macular degeneration.

Regular eye exams are an invaluable tool in maintaining your eyes' health by detecting and preventing disease. Some diseases develop slowly without causing pain or vision loss. Early detection of any problems can reduce the risk of further harm and allow for a choice of treatment options.

Part of your exam includes the following procedures:

• Slit lamp examination
• Dilated eye exam
• Refraction for glasses & contact lenses
  

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Normal Vision

Vision with a cataract

Cataract

Cataract is clouding of the natural lens of the eye. The most important factor in cataract formation is increasing age, but there are additional factors, including smoking, diabetes, and excessive exposure to sunlight. It can also be present at birth or be caused by injury to the eye.

More than 20 million Americans over the age of 40 have cataract, and it is the most frequent cause of preventable blindness in the world.

While a comprehensive eye examination by an eye care practitioner can determine for certain if you have a cataract forming, there are a number of signs and symptoms which may indicate a cataract:

• Blurred or hazy vision where colors may seem yellowed
• A tendency to become more nearsighted
• A gradual loss of color vision
• The feeling of having a film over the eyes
• An increased sensitivity to glare, especially at night

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New Technology in Cataract surgery

The existence of a cataract does not necessarily mean you need surgery. A cataract needs to be removed only when vision loss interferes with your everyday activities, such as driving, reading, or watching TV. The decision to have cataract surgery is one that you and your doctor should make together.

We perform a minimally invasive, no-stitch cataract surgery called phaco surgery. The patient is given anesthesia to numb the eye. A tiny incision (2.75 mm or less) is made in the eye and a small ultrasonic probe is inserted. This probe breaks up, or emulsifies, the cloudy lens into tiny pieces and gently sucks, or aspirates, those pieces out of the eye.

Cataract Surgery is a common outpatient procedure and it is one of the safest and most successful surgical procedures. During the cataract surgery the cloudy natural lens is removed and replaced with a clear synthetic lens called IOL (intraocular lens) to restore vision. Until recently, the only option was a fixed-focus lens, typically designed for faraway distances, which left the patient needing reading glasses to see up close. New multifocal lenses are now available that allow cataract patients to see near, far, and in between without wearing glasses. Since the multifocal lenses are relatively new, not all cataract surgeons are trained to implant them.

What is the ReSTOR Intraocular Lens?

AcrySof ® ReSTOR ® is the first and only IOL (intraocular lens) that provides cataract patients with and without presbyopia a quality range of vision. In clinical trials, 80 percent of patients reported “never” wearing reading glasses or bifocals following bilateral cataract surgery. The vast majority of patients who undergo cataract surgery today receive traditional IOLs, which typically require patients to use reading glasses or bifocals for near vision following surgery.

An implantable lens (IOL)

The AcrySof ® ReSTOR ® lens is a foldable IOL that represents breakthrough technology because of its unique, patented optic design, which allows patients to experience the highest level of freedom from glasses ever achieved in IOL clinical trials. It does not rely on the muscles, which weakens with age, to enable the eye to quickly change focus to see objects at near, intermediate and far distances. This allows 80 percent of cataract patients with and without presbyopia (age-related vision loss) the ability to see clearly without the aid of glasses or bifocals.

It is important to understand that while ReSTOR is a new technology, intraocular lenses are not new. Lens implant surgery for cataracts is the most commonly performed surgery in the U.S. and has been performed for more than two decades.

However, for years medical researchers have been eager to find a lens that would not treat cataracts but give patients the range of vision they wanted. Until recently, the only lens implant available was a “monofocal” lens that accommodated sight at a fixed distance, typically medium range. ReSTOR works by diffractive and refractive properties which allow an exceptionally high degree of freedom from any form of corrective eye glasses.

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Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy is a complication of diabetes that weakens the blood vessels that supply nourishment to the retina (the light-sensitive lining in the back of the eye where vision is focused). When these weak vessels leak, swell or develop thin branches, vision loss occurs. Laser surgery is the treatment of choice.

Focal laser coagulation may be recommended for patients with clinically significant macular edema (CSME) – swelling of the central retina, called the macula. The laser coagulates, or dries up, the fluid that is causing the swelling. A similar procedure called scatter laser photocoagulation (also known as pan-retinal photocoagulation or PRP) destroys abnormal blood vessel growth in patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR). If there is blood in the eye obscuring the laser, a vitrectomy (Vitreoretinal surgery) may be performed to drain the blood in preparation for photocoagulation.

Fortunately, diabetic retinopathy is preventable. People with diabetes are most susceptible to developing it, but your risk is reduced if you follow your prescribed diet and medications, exercise regularly, control your blood pressure, and avoid alcohol and cigarettes. Regular eye exams are an integral part of making sure your eyes are healthy.

Treatment modalities include:

• Laser surgery
• Vitreoretinal surgery
• Medications

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Glaucoma

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Glaucoma is the term for when the pressure inside the eye rises high enough to damage the optic nerve. The condition often develops over many years without causing pain – so you may not experience vision loss until the disease has progressed. Glaucoma cannot be prevented, and vision lost to it cannot be restored. Left untreated, glaucoma can cause blindness. For these reasons, regular eye exams and early detection are critical.

The high eye pressure associated with glaucoma is caused by blockages in the eye’s fluid drains. No one knows yet why the blockages form.

Symptoms are occasionally present and should be taken as warning signs that glaucoma may be developing. These include blurred vision, loss of peripheral vision, halo effects around lights and painful or reddened eyes. People at the greatest risk include those who are over the age of 40, diabetic, near-sighted, African-American, or who have a family history of glaucoma.

Once diagnosed, glaucoma can be controlled. Treatments to lower pressure in the eye include non-surgical methods such as prescription eye drops and medications, laser therapy, and surgery.

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Macular Degeneration

Normal Vision

Vision with Macular Degeneration

Macular degeneration is the number-one cause of blindness in the United States. It occurs when the macula - a part of the retina in the back of the eye that ensures that our vision is clear and sharp - degrades or "degenerates," causing a progressive loss of vision.

The "dry" form of macular degeneration has no treatment, but the "wet" form may be helped by laser procedures if it is detected early. Because of this, and because vision lost to the disease is irrecoverable, regular eye exams are highly recommended. Certain vitamins and minerals may also aid in slowing or preventing vision loss.

Symptoms often associated with macular degeneration include:

• A gradual loss of ability to see objects clearly
• A gradual loss of color vision
• Distorted vision
• A dark or empty area appearing in the center of vision

Treatments for macular degeneration include laser surgery, PDT/Visudyne, Macugen injection, lucentis injection, Avastin injection and implantable medication.

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Macular Hole

Macular Hole

A macular hole is exactly what it sounds like: a hole in the macula, the center of the retina responsible for central and reading vision. Specifically, the hole or defect occurs in the fovea, the center of the macula and the most delicate part of the entire retina.

Macular holes almost always develop during the natural aging process, when the vitreous (the gel that fills most of the eye) thins and separates from the macula. This can pull on the macula and cause a hole to form. Less commonly, macular holes are caused by eye injury, intraocular inflammation, retinal detachment and other diseases. Most cases occur in people over the age of 50.

At first, a macular hole may only cause a small blurry or distorted area in the center of vision. As the hole grows over several weeks or months, central vision progressively worsens. Peripheral vision is not affected, and there is no risk of blindness.

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Macular Pucker

Macular Pucker

An epiretinal membrane, also called a macular pucker, is a thin layer of tissue that forms over the macula, the area of the retina that gives us clear central and reading vision.

Epiretinal membranes often develop on their own as a part of the natural aging process. Particles that have drifted into the vitreous (the gel that fills the eye) settle onto the macula and begin to obscure vision. Membranes may also result from eye conditions or diseases such as retinal detachment, inflammation, injury or vascular conditions. These are called secondary epiretinal membranes, whereas spontaneously formed membranes are called idiopathic.

Many epiretinal membranes do not disrupt vision. Thicker membranes, however, can create wrinkles or puckers in the macula, and small blurry or distorted areas in the center of vision may appear. Vision loss increases as the membrane thickens. Peripheral vision is not affected, and there is no risk of blindness.

Some epiretinal membranes heal on their own. For those that do not, surgery is recommended. The procedure is outpatient with local anesthesia. A vitrectomy is performed to remove the vitreous gel, a saline solution fills the eye and then the membrane is lifted from the macula. There is no non-surgical alternative.

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Office Laser Surgeries

• Argon laser trabeculopasty
• Iridotomy
• YAG Laser (capsulotomy)
• Focal laser treatment
• Panretinal photocoagulation
• Cryotherapy (retinal tear repair, retinal lesion destruction)
• Photocoagulation (retinal detachment)
• PDT Laser

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