What is Nearsightedness?

Nearsightedness, myopia, is the most common cause of vision problem in people under the age of 40. The number of people with nearsightedness continues to grow. Just a few decades ago, the number of Americans with myopia was about 25%. Today, over 40% of Americans are nearsighted. In fact, it is projected globally that 50% of the world’s population will be myopic by 2050.

Signs and Symptoms of Myopia

Children who are nearsighted often struggle to see things on the board at school or are unable to see things like a clock or television clearly. Adults, typically struggle seeing road signs or recognizing faces across a room. Individuals may squint to see these distant objects. However, these people will be able to see well for near tasks such as reading and working on a computer.

Treatment for diabetic retinopathy is dependent on what stage of disease you have, your level of vision and the doctor’s clinical decision.

For mild nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy, the treatment is good control of your blood sugar and blood pressure. Control your blood sugar by watching your diet and taking the medication prescribed by your doctor. Controlling you blood pressure helps keep the eye’s blood vessels healthy.

Diabetic retinopathy results from damage to the blood vessels within the retina, the tissue that lines the back of the eye. The retina is where the light rays that enter the eye are focused. This information is transported via the optic nerve to the back of the brain where it is processed into the pictures we see. With diabetic retinopathy, the blood vessels within the retina leak fluid and bleed. This can affect a person’s ability to see clearly.

November is American Diabetes Month and Diabetic Eye Disease Month. This is a perfect time to discuss how diabetes can affect the eyes.

Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness among working-age Americans. It is the result of damage to the retina, the light-sensitive tissue in the back of the eye. Early detection, proper management of your diabetes and annual dilated eye exams can protect against vision loss.

You may ask yourself...why do they dilate my eyes when I see the eye doctor? Is it really necessary? We want to answer that question today.

The short answer is that by dilating the eye, it allows the doctor to get the best view possible of the back 2/3 of the eye.

Pink eye is a common cause of school and workplace absences. The medical name for pink eye is conjunctivitis. It gets this name because it is a result of harmful bacteria or viruses invading the thin moist membrane lining of the outer eye and eyelids, the conjunctiva.

Most pink eye will go away on its own in 1-2 weeks...See Your Eye Doctor Right Away if:

• You are in pain or have trouble seeing
• You are sensitive to light
• Your symptoms have continued for 1 week or more
• Your symptoms are getting worse
• Your eye is producing a lot of pus or mucus
• You have any other symptoms of an infection, like a fever or achiness

What is astigmatism? This is a question many have for one of the most common vision problems. At least 30% of the US population has some level of astigmatism. We will answer everything you need to know about astigmatism in this blog. Yes, it is “astigmatism” not “stigmatism” as it is commonly referred to. You don’t have “a stigmatism”...you have astigmatism.

What is Astigmatism?

Similar to nearsightedness and farsightedness, astigmatism is a refractive error. It is simply a problem with how the eye focuses light. It is not a disease or eye health problem.

Are your eyes bothering you while at work? Eyestrain is a common problem found in the workplace and with schoolwork. This is even more common with the extended screen time we all have at work and at home. We will cover common symptoms, causes and treatments in this blog.

Common symptoms of eyestrain include the following:
• Tired, uncomfortable, or burning eyes
• Watery or dry eyes
• Blurred or double vision
• Headaches 
• Increased sensitivity to light
• Sore neck, shoulders or back

When you have an eye exam, the doctor will state your vision is 20/20 or 20/something. What does that mean? Is 20/20 “perfect vision”? If not, what is “perfect vision”?

Let’s take a closer look at how your vision is assessed when you have an eye exam and what the terminology the doctor uses actually means.