Ask Dr. Beach: “What are these floaters or spots I’ve had in my vision?” Floating spots or strands within your vision, also known as “floaters,” are a pretty common occurrence and in some cases can be pretty annoying. Despite the annoyance, floaters are not cause for concern. However, exceptions do […]
An essential component to ocular health: Vitamin A If you ever walk by the vitamin and supplements aisle of the grocery store, you’ll notice dozens of brands specifically promoting eye health. Which of these vitamins are important to eye health? How much should you take? What happens if you get […]
Steroids (Corticosteroids) Ever wonder why an optometrist wants you to list all of your medications? Ever wonder what a medicine for arthritis, lupus, or any other condition has to do with a comprehensive eye health exam? In this series of blog entries I’ll be talking about potential ocular side effects […]
A recent study in the Journal of Ophthalmology compared the incidence of myopia (near-sightedness) from the early 1970’s to 2004. The researchers found a 66% increase in myopia over that 30 year time frame. A 66% increase! I get a little bored with statistics sometimes, but that is an amazing […]
Q: “Do bifocal contacts work like regular bifocals? Do you have to look down to be able to read up close?” This question was posed on our Facebook Fan Page and it’s one of my favorite questions to answer. Bifocal contact lenses work very differently from bifocal glasses. When a […]
Not only does the movie, Avatar, bring to life some awe-inspiring computer-generated visual effects but it’s also a vision test of sorts. In order to see the “floating” or 3-D effect of the movie, an individual must have a pair of those nifty 3-D glasses AND the ability for stereopsis. […]
It’s that time of year again….Restaurant Week. Virginia Beach is first, followed by Norfolk the following week. Be sure to check out the great locally owned restaurants participating in this “Foodie Holiday.” Click to the right for the list of participating venues….there’s definitely too many to choose!
What is Glaucoma? Wow! That’s a loaded question, and I’m glad to get that question from patients every day. I’m so glad because a better public awareness of glaucoma will be key to preventing the blinding effects of the disease. Statistics and scientific data are a little boring sometimes, […]
Researchers at the University of Missouri, using a newly-developed pupillary response test, have shown that children with autism have pupils that respond slower to light. The researchers used an infrared device to measure pupil responses to a 100 millisecond flash of light. The researchers, according to the December issue of […]
A patient asked me last week how contact lenses were made. My explanation probably wasn’t as cool as this Discovery Channel video: