All contact lenses have a "FDA Recommended Wear Schedule."   That means that a contact lens rated for 2 week wear has the lowest risk of problems in that period of time.  The rating is based on resistance to bacterial contamination, resistence to protein deposits, maintaining suffucient moisture throughtout the day and allowing sufficient oxygen to reach the cornea. So what happens if you over-wear the lenses beyond the recommended wear time.  Well, if you do it once in awhile, probably nothing.  If you are in the habit of wearing your 2 week lenses for 6 to 8 weeks, you are actually causing damage to your eyes that is permanent and generally painless.  Don't let the lens decide when it's time to dispose of them.  "I throw them away when they bother my eyes."  I have heard hundreds of patients repeat this phrase.  By the time you do get an eye infection, or pain or blurred vision  IT IS TOO LATE.  Permanent damage has already occurred.  Repeated episodes like this causes scar tissue of corneal and conjunctival tissue that is not reversible and will lead to the inability to safely wear contact lenses. Read the box your lenses came in or the package insert or ask your eye care professional.  The FDA and contact lens manufacturers spend millions of dollars testing and rating contact lenses for your protection. Stay within the recommended wear time, dispose of the lenses when you are supposed to...not when they "bother you."  and you will enjoy problem-free contact lens wear for as long as you choose to wear contacts. Visit my website for more information or to schedule a consultation. www.CustomVisionCare.com   ...read more

Several patients have asked me if there are any natural ways to improve vision.  Unfortunately, there are several methods that have been tried over the years, but there are NO proven methods to improve eyesight naturally and here's why.  Your eyesight is determined by several factors. First, your family gene pool.  Near-sightedness is hereditary and so is significant amounts of astigmatism.  Second, we all grow and develop and age.  Our eyes get weaker with advancing age. These changes are inevitable. Third, how we use our eyes has the least effect on how well you see.  Near-sightedness does not come from reading too much or too much computer work. As far as nutritionally, vegetables like carrots do have beneficial effects on the eyes by improving retinal circulation minimizing damage from oxidative stress, but you would need to eat 1 to 2 lbs of carrots per day, everyday to get any real benefit. However, what we can do is maintain our eye health and maximize our visual efficiency with a few good habits.               One:  eat  6 to 8 servings of vegetables and fruits every day                       OR  take a supplement that provides those nutrients.             Two:  always take a break after about 2 hours of reading or computer work to rest your eyes.             Three:  wear proper sun protection for your eye (UVA and UVB  filtered sunglasses are BEST.) For more information visit my websites www.CustomVisionCare.com www.VisionAndHealth.nutraMetrix.com ...read more

More than 5.3 million Americans have Alzheimer's Disease.  The problem doctors face everyday is that Alzheimer's Disease is not easy or cheap to diagnose.  Brain scans, like MRI and CT scans, can cost several hundred dollars up to as much as $4000 each.  These scanning tests are also not completely accurate. Did you know that Optometrists can discover clues to Alzheimer's Disease in your comprehensive eye examination?  That's right !  The pathological changes that occur in the brain causing Alzheimer's Disease also occur in the eye.  A very specific type of protein ( amyloid beta)  deposits in the cells of the brain causing the cognitive degeneration we call Alzheimer's.  These same proteins can deposit in the lens of the eye causing a very specific type of cataract.  These same proteins can also deposit in the retina contributing to macular degeneration. A thorough eye examination including pupil dilation may just help prevent Alzheimer's Disease. If you are over 40, get a comprehensive eye examination every year.  Not only will your eye doctor help maintain your vision and eye health, he or she may just be able to help diagnose early Alzheimer's Disease.     ...read more

Did you ever wish you could see without glasses or contact lenses, but are afraid of doing a surgical procedure on your eyes like LASIK? Well, there is another way.  Consider wearing Paragon CRT Night Retainer Contact lenses. These high tech lenses are worn to bed at night.  You sleep 6 to 8 hours in them and when you remove them in the morning you can see clearly, usually 20/20 all day with no daytime glasses or contact lenses.  YES, you read that correctly !    No daytime contacts or glasses.  No surgery.  Just Great Vision ! The technique works from age 8 to 80 for nearsightedness and astigmatism.  Now, you can even be fitted with these if you are far-sighted.  The technology to be able to achieve great vision during the day without corrective lenses was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2002.  The concept, however, is over 50 years old.  Older than LASIK techniques. Ortho-keratology has been in existence since around 1950.  The use of a firm contact lens material to reshape the corneal has long been known to be safe.  We just needed higher oxygen permeable materials to be able to fit the lenses over-night for accelerated correction. For more information visit   www.CustomVisionCare.com   and click on the "Non-Surgical CRT" tab. NO GLASSES !  NO DAYTIME CONTACTS !   JUST GREAT VISION !! ...read more

Many of my patients ask me what vitamins or supplements they could take to keep their eyes healthy.  Others ask if their vitamins could interfere with their medications.  I've also been asked how to determine which supplements are best for each person. Now I have the answer to these questions.  NUTRAMETRIX  and the NUTRI-PHYSICAL. There are many types of supplements available.  From those you can get in the supermarket, to those you can get at a specialized vitamin shop.  All vitamins are NOT created equal. Some of them can definitely interact with medication.  Some should only be taken with food.  Others should be taken on an empty stomach.  How can you know?  The best type of vitamins and supplements are the kind that you can truly digest; that get absorbed efficiently and get into your system to help prevent deterioration and degeneration of body tissues.  Hard packed vitamin pills the size of a quarter are not the kind of vitamins you should be taking.  Nearly 90% of these vitamin pills pass right through your digestive system and you know where they end up. The most efficiently digested supplements have to be ISOTONIC. In other words, highly digestible and highly absorbed in the small intestine.  Nutrametrix products are OVER 95% absorbed by the body.  Therefore, your body gets what you pay for. Visit my website and take the Nutri-Physical Questionnaire.  About 100 questions regarding your age, lifestyle, level of exercise, eating habits, medications, smoking habits, drinking habits and much more.  Your honest answers to the questionnaire will then provide you with a customized recommendation of what supplements you should be taking.  www.nutraMetrix.com/VisionAndHealth SEE WELL !    STAY HEALTHY ! ...read more

I have been a Board Certified Optometric Physician for over 24 years and I am still surprised by how little most people know about their eyes.  A patient came in today complaining of blurriness in front of the left eye for several months; didn't complain of any redness or pain, just filmy vision. She takes several different kinds of medications for blood pressure, thyroid, anxiety, cholesterol, asthma and arthritis.  On examination, everything was healthy.  There was no sign of glaucoma or damage from blood pressure, thyroid or cholesterol. My diagnosis.....Dry Eye Syndrome.  It is the most under-diagnosed condition of the eyes.  Frequent causes are advancing age, smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure AND  as a side effect of many medications.  Most  of which she was taking.  There is a great misconception by most people that " I see okay, so I must be okay."   This can not be farther from the truth.  Most eye diseases and conditions do not cause pain and have few symptoms.  Dry Eye Snydrome is a common cause of annoyance and can increased the risk for infection and inflammation. An annual eye exam is crucial to maintaining eye health and great vision.  ...read more

March is World Glaucoma Awareness Month.  Most people don't know that glaucoma is still a leading cause of blindness worldwide. Glaucoma has few symptoms and is generally painless.  You will not know you have the disease until it is diagnosed by your eye care professional or you lose your sight. Research has not yet determined exactly what triggers glaucoma to start, but their are several risk factors we consider when making the diagnosis.  Glaucoma diagnosis is based on measuring the pressure inside your eyes and determining if that pressure is too high for your eye to manage.  If the pressure is too high, then permanent optic nerve damage occurs. We measure the pressure and the optic nerve function known as a Visual Field Analysis. We know that one of the primary risk factors for developing glaucoma is family history.  If your grandparents, parents or siblings have or have had glaucoma, it is much more likely that you, too, may develop the disease. We also know that people of black, African descent are more likely to get glaucoma.  Other risk factors are diabetes, smoking and previous trauma to the eyes.  Glaucoma is also more common over the age of 40. Over the past 10 years, we have also learned that the thickness of the cornea has a direct effect on how accurately we measure eye pressure. Thicker corneas show artificially higher pressures and thin corneas mean the pressure is actually higher than is measured by our testing equipment.     The key to diagnosing and treating glaucoma is getting a yearly eye exam.  Don't let this disease sneak up on you.  If you are over 40, have a family member with glaucoma, are diabetic, smoke cigarettes, have had eye trauma or haven't had a comprehensive eye examination in over 2 years.....Please get tested NOW ! ...read more

World Glaucoma Awareness Week is fast approaching.  March 7 - 13 2010. Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that involve progressive damage to the optic nerve. The center of the optic nerve, the "cup", is the most vulnerable point inside the eye for damage from the pressure build-up of glaucoma. If left untreated, most types of glaucoma progress (without pain nor obvious symptoms to the patient) towards gradually worsening visual damage leading to blindness. Once visual damage occurs it is not reversible, and this has led to glaucoma being described as the "silent blinding disease" or the "sneak thief of sight". Glaucoma is the second most common cause of blindness worldwide. It is estimated that 4.5 million persons globally are blind due to glaucoma and that this number will rise to 11.2 million by 2020. The most common types of adult-onset glaucoma are Primary Open Angle Glaucoma (POAG) - a form most frequently encountered in patients of Caucasian and African ancestry - and Angle-Closure Glaucoma (ACG), which is the more common in patients of Asian ancestry. There is currently no cure for glaucoma and vision lost from glaucoma is irreversible. However medication or surgery (traditional or laser) can halt or slow-down any further vision loss. Therefore, early detection is essential to limiting visual impairment and preventing the progression towards severe visual handicap or blindness. I strongly urge everyone who has not had a comprehensive eye examination in over 2 years to call their eye doctor and schedule one today. The key to preserving vision and avoiding blindness is to have regular check-ups.  To schedule an appointment, call my office at 561-487-3340.   Major medical insurance covers examinations and treatment for glaucoma with applicable deductibles.  Call Today !   ...read more

Have you ever wished you could wear contact lenses?  Have you been told by another doctor that contacts weren't for you?  Do you wear bifocal glasses and didn't realize you, too, could wear contact lenses? ******************************************************************************************************************** If any of these apply to you, then you need to try again ! Contact lens technology has vastly improved in the last 5 to 6 years.  Lenses are much more comfortable now and newer types of plastics allow more oxygen to reach the eyes which makes them healthier for the eyes.  In addition, the fabrication process is so much more precise that I can now offer patients High Definition vision. Patients that have astigmatism ( oval, not round shape to their eyes) can now wear contact lenses that are much more comfortable and stable on the eye then ever before.  Even patients with astigmatism who wear bifocals can now experience the comfort and freedom from glasses that contact lenses offer. Did you know tht the most common reason for patients to stop wearing contact lenses is dry eye symptoms? Their lenses get more uncomfortable as the day progresses, their vision gets blurry and their eyes burn.  If these were some of the reasons that you stopped wearing contact lenses......then you should try again, too.  Now, there is no excuse for not trying contact lenses if you are truly motivated to wear them.  I even fit contact lenses on children as young as ten years old, especially for school and sports. So come on, the time to try contact lenses is now.  With more types, sizes, colors and affordability you owe it to yourself to give contact lenses a try.  Call for an appointment today !! ...read more

Most people don't know much about their eyes.  They wake up in the morning, open their eyes and if they can see the clock on the night stand.....they assume everything must be OK.  This cannot be farther from the truth.  The eye is an extremely complex organ system.  There is a lot going on inside the eye and inside the brain.  Many of the things that can go wrong will not cause pain.  So how do you know if something is wrong with your eyes.  The answer is that you won't without a comprehensive evaluation at least once per year.  More frequent exams are recommended if you take medication for diabetes, cholesterol or high blood pressure.  A comprehensive eye examination involves measuring not only what you see, but how you see.  We evaluate eye-to-hand coordination, focusing, eye movement, pupillary reaction to light, peripheral vision, eye pressure, blood pressure, eye health and perception.  An eye exam also indicates much about brain function, memory and visual processing. Your eyes are one of the most important systems in your body.  The way "EYE" see it, your eyes deserve as much care and maintenance as your car......No......... they deserve much more. ...read more