Category: Blog

Your eyes are constantly producing tears, which is vital to keep your eyes healthy, comfortable, and seeing properly. People suffer from dry eyes because of a chronic lack of lubrication and moisture on the eye’s surface. Tears cover the eye’s surface to keep it moist and wash away dust and debris that could damage the cornea and lead to an eye infection. Read more to learn about the causes and symptoms of dry eye or schedule an exam today to find relief!

Symptoms of Dry Eye 

Dry Eyes, also called dry eye syndrome or dry eye disease, affects each person differently. Individuals may experience only one symptom or multiple symptoms outlined below, but the good news is there is no reason to suffer from these symptoms. 

1. Burning Eye Sensation
2. Scratchy or Itchy Eye Sensation
3. Aching and Sore Eye Sensation
4. Dry Eye Sensation 
5. Foreign Body Sensation (Feeling like something is in your eye.)
6. Fatigued or Tired Eyes
7. Red Eyes
8. Light Sensitivity
9. Excessive Tearing 
10. Blurred Vision

Some of these conditions may be present at all times or only at certain times. 

Some people may only notice discomfort when trying to wear contact lenses or when they are in windy conditions that cause air to be blowing directly on their face (like when driving with the vent blowing). Whether you suffer all the time or some of the time, we can determine a treatment plan that helps. 

Causes of Dry Eye

Like with many health conditions, eye-related and otherwise, there isn’t one clear cause, but instead many potential causes. Similar to symptoms, some people may have more than one cause contributing to their dry eye symptoms. 

If you believe you may be suffering from dry eye, reach out to your eye doctor to schedule an eye appointment to discuss your symptoms and determine a treatment plan that will work best for you.

Vision involves a complex relationship between the brain, eyes, and the nerves connecting them to keep them working together smoothly. Most people aren’t shocked to learn a child’s eyes are not fully developed upon birth. However, some are surprised to learn that a child’s vision development spans many years and some childhood activities can encourage healthy eye development. 

Vision in Infancy

Early Childhood Vision Development

As your child continues to grow, so do their visual skills. Your child will begin to focus on categorizing and labeling things, such as colors, shapes, and body parts. If your child has vision problems, you may notice issues with their ability to complete these categorizations. However, even if they are doing well, it is still important to schedule your child another eye exam around three years of age. Schedule a comprehensive eye exam before your child enters school to provide enough time to catch and correct any vision problems.

Visual health also has an impact on your child’s physical development. Early childhood is a critical developmental stage when children develop fine-motor and gross-motor skills, including drawing, jumping, catching, kicking, and throwing a ball. 

When your child begins to enter a classroom setting, undiagnosed vision issues may start to take a toll. Even if they are unable to express in words why they are struggling, keep a close eye on the way your child is learning and interacts with their materials and environment. Here are some things you may notice:

• It takes your child longer than others to complete the same task. 
• It takes your child longer than others to learn something. 
• If your child begins to complain of headaches or tired eyes. 
• Your child begins squinting or frequently rubbing their eyes. 
• Your child starts tilting their head, holding things too close to their face, or closing one eye to see. 
• Or if your child begins avoiding activities that require near or distance vision.

Undetected vision problems can cause developmental and educational delays, so it’s important to schedule eye exams every year once your child turns three unless directed by your eye doctor. Your child needs to have all of the necessary tools required to succeed, and we can help! Give us a call or schedule your child’s first eye exam today with our office.

Health benefits can be tricky to navigate, specifically a Flexible Spending Account or FSA. FSAs can be a tremendous benefit when used correctly. Unfortunately, many people unknowingly forfeit money when their FSA renews, usually on January 1st.

What is a Flexible Spending Account (FSA)

A Flexible Spending Account is an excellent way for individuals to set aside additional funds to cover expected or unexpected healthcare costs throughout the year. When working with FSAs, employers typically offer a structure that allows employees to deposit part of their paycheck directly into their FSA before withdrawing taxes. That means you can cover qualified medical expenses with pre-taxed income. 

However, there are some stipulations to FSAs that are important to know before getting started. FSAs have a “use it or lose” rule. This means the money accumulating in your account throughout the year needs to be used by the end of the year, or you lose access to using it on your healthcare expenses. 

Understanding Your Options

Not everyone has an FSA. If you are unsure if your company offers an FSA or if you are enrolled in it, start by reaching out to your company’s benefits coordinator, usually your HR Manager. They will provide you with the necessary information to become informed about your health benefit options. 

If you have an FSA, be sure to understand these key parts of your plan.

• Your total contribution per pay period.
• What your employer contributes (if they do).
• How to submit a claim and receive the reimbursement.
• Any details around the plan’s potential grace period or carryover. 

A grace period, usually two to three months, allows an employee to submit a claim that may go past the end of the calendar year. If you have a standard FSA that expires on January 1st, your grace period might extend to mid-March. While not all plans offer carryover if your’s does you may be allowed to keep up to $550 for the following year’s expenses. 

Your vision is one of your five senses responsible for allowing you to enjoy the world around you and create unforgettable memories. We may be biased, but we think vision is the greatest of the five senses! The only way to guarantee you will see your best year after year is by scheduling a comprehensive eye exam today!

Why are yearly eye exams important? Here are our top three reasons: 

• Eye exams & clear vision help increase success at school, work, and more.
• Exams can catch asymptomatic conditions before vision loss occurs.
• Eye exams can provide insight into other health-related issues. 

A Clear Vision to Success

According to experts, 80% of the information presented in school is visual! Based on this statistic, you can see clear vision is essential to a child’s success in the classroom. Help your children feel prepared during their school year by scheduling a yearly eye exam. 

Vision Screenings Vs. An Exam

Schools commonly provide vision screenings to help detect vision problems in younger children. However, a vision screening is not a replacement for a yearly comprehensive eye exam. Screening tests cannot diagnose the problem. These tests cannot detect any health concerns we may find during a standard eye exam but only flag that a comprehensive eye exam is needed.   

Reducing Your Risk of Eye Disease

As you age, you develop a higher risk for many medical eye diseases. Some eye-related conditions can appear with no symptoms, affecting your long-term vision health. Specifically, many people who develop glaucoma often don’t show symptoms at first. Individuals suffering from glaucoma usually develop irreversible vision loss before they have learned that something is wrong. A routine exam can detect signs like high eye pressure and other early signals before any serious damage to your vision occurs.

While the term myopia control may sound unfamiliar or scary, it may be a perfect fit for your family’s eye care needs! Myopia control is the medical term used to describe specific treatments to slow the progression of nearsightedness in children. According to healthychildren.org, nearsightedness is a common vision problem that often begins between 6 and 14 and affects roughly 5% of preschoolers, 9% of school-aged children, and 30% of adolescents. 

Your Child’s Eye Development

Myopia occurs when the eyeball is too long (from front to back) or if your eye’s cornea is too curved. As a result, the light that enters your eye falls short of the retina, causing your eye to have a harder time focusing the way it should. This lack of focus results in distant objects being blurry and close objects being clear. 

Myopia generally gets worse through adolescence, which is why we see increasing percentages of myopia in older age groups. In most cases, an individual’s prescription will start to stabilize in their early twenties. However, for some this stabilization may take longer and can result in higher myopia prescriptions later in life. Severe myopia can lead to a higher risk for some vision-threatening complications including, glaucoma, cataracts, retinal detachment, and even blindness.

Myopia Control Options

The good news is eye care professionals have four ways to offer myopia control treatment, listed below. Interested in learning what myopia control treatments we offer? Call our office to schedule an appointment today!

• atropine eye drops
• multifocal contact lenses
• myopia control glasses
• orthokeratology (ortho-k)

If your child is nearsighted, ask us about treatment options during your next exam! Our eye care team will help determine if myopia control is right for them.