People often come in to our office with complaints of dry eye.  And this summer's heat waves are sure to make the problem seem even worse.  Have you ever wondered what causes your eyes to become dry and what you can do about it?

Your eyes need tears to keep them moist and lubricated.  An insufficient tear film on the surface of the eye can cause your eyes to sting, burn, feel gritty or water.  Worst of all, an insufficient tear film leaves the ocular surface unprotected, which could possibly lead to infections and corneal scarring.  Tears are composed of oil, water, and mucus.  The outer layer is the oil layer.  Its function is to prevent evaporation of the tears.  The middle layer is made up of water.  The water layer helps the eyes wash away irritants and keeps your eyes moist.  The surface of the eye is coated with mucus.  This mucus coating allows the tears to stay on the surface of the eye and protects the eye by providing a barrier against harmful bacteria. 

Dry eye usually results from an imbalance of these three components of the tears.  Age, arthritis, vitamin A deficiency, environmental factors and contact lens wear can each contribute to dry eye as well.  Here are several suggestions to improve the symptoms of dry eye.  Lid scrubs using baby shampoo, along with warm compresses, can not only improve the quality of your tears, but can also be very relaxing.  Instillation of artificial tears is another very effective therapy to treat dry eye.  You can easily purchase them at any pharmacy.  There are a variety of tear supplements available, with some products formulated to treat dry eye ranging from mild to severe.  If the above treatments don't seem to have any effect on your dry eye, medication or surgery are alternative treatment options.

If you are suffering from dry eye, or other eye discomfort, you should obtain a complete eye examination.  Untreated dry eye can lead to other more serious problems.

Ah, the dog days of summer are once again upon us!  Many of you will probably take time off to travel, relax at the local parks and beaches, and/or partake in summertime BBQ parties.  While you enjoy the summer months, please don't forget to protect yourself and your loved ones from the dangers of UV exposure.  Applying maximal SPF-rated sunscreen and wearing UV-blocking sunglasses can dramatically decrease the risk of developing certain UV-related skin and eye diseases, such as melanoma, cataracts and macular degeneration.  Whenever possible, wear long-sleeved shirts, pants and brimmed hats to further protect yourself from the sun's devastating effects.

Summer is a great time to step back and enjoy life, but is also a time when the sun's rays are at their strongest and most damaging.  By adhering to the recommendations outlined above, you'll minimize your chances of developing the complications associated with UV overexposure, and be able to enjoy many more summers to come.   

Have you seen those pesky specks that appear to fly around wherever you move your eyes?  If so, you're not alone.  Most people are aware of those specks at one time or another.  Those specks are called floaters, and are actually found suspended within the jelly-like matrix of the eye.  Most floaters are benign, while others may be signs of more serious vision-threatening conditions.  These conditions include the formation of retinal holes or tears.  Holes or tears in the retina predispose the eye to the development of retinal detachments.  Although rare, retinal detachments which are not diagnosed and treated in a timely manner may result in severe irreversible vision loss.

Patients who are at above average risk for the development of retinal holes and tears include those who are moderately to severely nearsighted, suffered blunt trauma to the head or eye, are over 50 years old, or have had a past history of retinal detachment.  These patients should undergo a comprehensive eye examination at least once a year.

If you experience floaters that are of recent onset, which may be accompanied by persistent light flashes, please contact our office immediately.  They may be signs of a retinal hole, tear, or even detachment.  Don't wait for these symptoms to subside.  They may not, and the longer you wait, you reduce your chances of preserving your precious gift of sight.

Long summer days are again upon us.  With the increased amount of daylight also comes the chance to bask in the sun's life-giving rays.  If you're going to be spending any time outdoors this summer, you need to have the proper protection for your eyes from damaging UV rays.  Transitions® lenses are a wonderful option for prescription eyeglass wearers.  These lenses are clear indoors, and darken outdoors.  Not only are they excellent at reducing glare, Transitions® lenses also block 100% of harmful UVA and UVB radiation.  Because the lenses automatically adjust to changing light levels, there's no need to have separate pairs of eyeglasses and sunglasses.  Also, Transitions® lenses can be had with virtually any frame style, so your choices are limitless.

Transitions® lenses are available in grey or brown.  Grey is a neutral filter and offers the most natural vision without any color distortion  Objects viewed with Transitions® lenses that change to brown will give off warm reddish tones, thereby increasing contrast.  They are great for Seattle's overcast skies!  Best of all, Transitions® lenses are available in single vision, bifocal and progressive lens designs as well as in regular plastic, polycarbonate and super-thin hi-index lens materials.

Visit us today for a demonstration, and see if Transitions® lenses are right for you!

Caring for contact lenses can be very tricky.  You might have experienced that you didn't know which solution to buy when you were at the contact lens aisle of your corner drugstore.  There are a lot of contact lens solutions out on the market.  It is important to know that some products may not be compatible with your contact lenses or could harm your eyes.  It is essential to understand contact lens care.  Not properly caring for your contact lenses could lead to serious eye infections, and potential blindness.

The basics of contact lens care is not very complicated.  You learned it when you started to use contact lenses.  Washing your hands before touching your eyes and contact lenses is the first step.  Moisturizing soap should not be used, as the lotion in the soap may coat the surface of your contact lenses.  Next is drying your hands with a lint-free towel.  This minimizes the possiblity of lint inadvertantly adhering to the surface of the contact lens prior to insertion.

The introduction of multipurpose solutions has made proper lens care  less time-consuming, less expensive, and more hassle-free than ever before.  Following the instructions on the label of each particular solution is very important.  Some products require you to rub the contact lens in the palm of your hand with a few drops of solution, while others just require rinsing.  Your contact lenses should then be placed in a clean lens case, or lens holder, and filled with apporopriate solution for your particular disinfection system.  Disinfecting kills micoroorginisms on the contact lens.  Do not soak your contact lenses overnight in plain saline solution.  Doing so does nothing to disinfect the contact lenses, as saline solution itself possesses no anti-microbial activity.  Disinfection time varies from product to product, so check the packaging for details.  Also, we recommend you replace your contact lens case every three months.

Some people have allergic reactions to contact lens solutions.  These allergies can crop up even if you have been using the same product for years.  A preservative called thimerasol was found to cause problems in about 10% of patients, so it is no longer used in any eye care products.  However, people can still have reactions to other preservatives and may need to switch to preservative-free solutions.  Hydrogen peroxide-based disinfection systems are a wonderful preservative-free alternative to multipurpose solutions.  Hydrogen peroxide can cause severe eye irritation if placed directly in the eye.  Care systems incorporating hydrogen peroxide utilize a special contact lens case with an attached platinum disc.  The platinum disc serves to neutralize the hydrogen peroxide to eye-friendly saline.  Therefore, contact lenses which are disinfected using a hydrogen peroxide disinfecting system need a minimum of six hours soaking time for the hydrogen peroxide to be neutralized.  After six hours, the contact lenses are ready to be worn on the eye.  If desired, rinsing your contact lenses prior to insertion may be performed using sterile saline solution specifically formulated for use in the eye.  We recommend aerosol saline solutions as these are preservative-free.

If you have experienced some discomfort with your contact lenses, you might want to see your eye doctor to rule out possible solution sensitivity.