Astigmatisms

This five syllable word sounds a whole lot scarier than it actually is. Astigmatisms are a common diagnosis when someone comes to get an eye exam and they can be corrected. The word traces back to Greek roots with the literally meaning of "without a spot or mark." However, with astigmatisms, there are multiple points on where light focuses in the eye. Those multi focal points will cause vision to appear blurry.

The reason for this is because the cornea has an oblong shape, instead of a shape closer to a perfect sphere.

The picture above shows how the cornea is shaped in an odd way that is making the letter "A" appear to focus on two different parts of the eye. If that oddly shaped part followed the contour of the rest of the eye, there would only be one point of focus. That is where corrective lenses come into play.

Glasses are commonly thought to be the only way to correct for an astigmatism. This couldn't be further from the truth. Contact lenses are now able to fit around the astigmatism and properly correct vision, and not just the hard lenses. There are a number of soft lens options that are just as comfortable and have no discernible differences over the spherical counterparts. Refractive surgery like LASIK can also correct for astigmatism. Even if the astigmatism is severe, they can be corrected.

Astigmatisms can happen naturally or they can be caused by other factors. So if you have an astigmatism, your eye doctor will let you know and tell you about a proper course of correction.

If you want to learn more about Astigmatisms, visit All About Vision for more information.

Online Contact Lens Ordering Available

Just a quick update about the website for our patients. Online contact lens ordering is back online. If you have have a current prescription, follow the link below to get brand new contacts shipped directly to your door.

Eye Care 101: 20/20 Vision

Eye Care is one of the most important parts in the practice of Optometry. Good eye care practices are both the responsibility of patients and doctors. This series of posts will cover the basics that highlight important topics in Optometry to show how eye care is important.

One thing most people know about optometry is that 20/20 vision is good to have. It means that at a distance of 20 feet, objects are seen clearly and crisply. If an Optometrist were to say you had 20/100 vision, that would mean that you would have to stand 20 feet away from an object while someone with normal vision could stand 100 feet to see the object just as clearly.



I tend to find pictures help explain this. In the above image, the man has 20/100 vision. He has to stand 20 feet away from the vase on the table while the woman can stand 100 feet away and see the same clarity as the man. The 20/(number) figure that is given by Optometrists part of what is known as "visual acuity."

The reason why everyone doesn't have 20/20 vision is due to a variety of reasons including nearsightedness (blurry distance vision), farsightedness (blurry close-up vision), astigmatism (non-spherical eye) or eye disease. Optometrists will be able to determine the causes during a comprehensive eye exam. The way to check distance vision is generally done by reading lines off those famous eye charts. Because of there are many factors for differences in visual acuity, that could mean that even people with 20/20 vision will note their vision could use adjustment.

The most common way to correct distance vision by prescribing glasses or contacts. There are also visual therapy programs and medications that can help improve vision, when the situation calls for them. Since the eyes are rapidly changing all the time, annual eye exams are important to make sure that visual corrections are current and aiding the health of the eye.

20/20 vision is a good barometer for healthy vision as it tests distance and clarity; however, it is only one part in the story. Saying someone has "perfect" sight when they have 20/20 vision is entirely misleading. What is missing are the other indicators of optimal vision like peripheral (side) vision, coordination of the eyes, depth perception, ability to focus and color testing. In summary, 20/20 vision is important but it isn't the end all, be all measurement for healthy vision.

Learn about eye glasses at All About Vision.

143 Million American Workers Plugged into an Electronic Device at Least 6 Hours Daily

The time people spend in front of a desktop computer or laptop is on a minuscule decline. The only reason for that because there are more devices that have the same basic functionality like smartphones, tablet touchscreen devices and handheld gaming consoles are eating up more of our time. The video below shows some interesting statistics about how many hours our eyes are in front of an electronic media device. The video could have used some tighter pacing, but the 2 minutes are jam packed with eye opening statistics. Knowledge of these kinds of things is really important for healthy eye care. If you are experiencing eye fatigue related to staring at some kind of electronic display, call an optometrist immediately and schedule an appointment. Your eyes will thank you.

People are Turned Off by 3D TV Glasses

The biggest push in home consumer electronics right now is 3D. We've all been to the movies where you purchase a ticket and also get a pair of special glasses that allow wearers to see images "pop" out of the screen. The technology is moving into living rooms and so are those glasses.

According to a Nielsen TV study, USA Today is reporting that people do not like wearing special glasses that are only used for the one task of seeing 3D images from their TVs, even if they are impressed with what gets displayed. A lot of times, people will have to put these glasses on over their corrective vision glasses. It seems as if people aren't too keen on wearing glasses if they don't have to for healthy vision.



Another source of contention is the fact that different TV makers use slightly different 3D technology so the brand of glasses have to match the brand of television. That would be like having to wear a different pair of Ford corrective vision glasses to drive a Ford car and a pair of Chevy glasses to drive a Chevy car.  There is work being done to eliminate the need for  the glasses, but that technology might be a little further away than some people hope it to be.

In future posts, we'll cover how the eye see 3D images but this is an interesting finding that people do not want to wear glasses if they don't have to.

Have a Safe Labor Day

Labor Day weekend is officially here. We just wanted to wish everyone a happy and safe holiday.

Our offices will be open on Labor Day.

A Splash of Color

The site has been live for around 72 hours already and changes are happening by the hour. Like the blue background. The big change today is that there is now a page dedicated to insurance information.

Another short update, but stay tuned as 4greatvision V2.0 takes shape.