Posts Tagged ‘doctor’
Choosing a LASIK eye surgeon is a decision that will last you a lifetime. The results from your LASIK surgery will last forever, so it is an investment in your future that will continue to give back to you for a long time to come. Choosing a LASIK surgeon is sometimes not as difficult as choosing a doctor for a more serious operation, but the results from a bad decision can potentially have just as devastating an effect on you life.
What to Look for in a LASIK Surgeon
Many people want the benefits of LASIK surgery, but have no idea where to start when it comes to what questions to ask to find the best surgeon for them. Here are a few things to make sure of when choosing a LASIK surgeon:
- Education: Check to see which medical school your doctor graduated from and if he/she continues to receive training in the latest LASIK eye surgery techniques and equipment.
- Licensing: You can check your doctor’s credentials on state licensing boards as well as going through the National Practitioners Data Bank to find out more about your doctor.
- Advertisements: An advertisement can be an excellent introduction to a LASIK surgeon’s practice. Advertisements will sometimes give you information on the surgeon, but it is better to do your own research to find out which surgeon is right for you.
- Board Certification: Ask your doctor if he is board certified beyond having the basic requirements to practice medicine. The American Board of Ophthalmology holds its members to a very high standard and requires them to have the latest training in their specialty.
- Referrals: Does the surgeon you are considering have a list of names of former and current patients you can contact for a personal referral? Also check to see if your surgeon has testimonials from former patients.
- Technology: There is only so much that even the most talented surgeon can accomplish without the right technology. Make sure that your doctor has invested in the latest technology. This can have a dramatic effect on the final outcome of your LASIK procedure.
- Cost: Most LASIK surgeons will try to make the procedure as affordable as they can to make it more accessible to their patients. However, the on-going training and investments in new technology require most qualified surgeons to charge a higher rate than those who would use older methods and equipment.
If you are looking for a LASIK eye surgeon in the Chicago or Arlington Heights, Illinois are, please visit the website of the Doctors for Visual Freedom to see if they have the right combination of skills, technology and pricing for you.
Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/vision-articles/how-do-you-choose-a-lasik-doctor-1456965.html
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There are three types of eye professionals: optometrists, ophthalmologists and opticians, the former two of which are eye doctors.
An eye optician should only take an optician training program or a formal training. They are only licensed to fit and sell kinds of eyewear according to the prescription from an optometrist or an ophthalmologist.
Equivalent to a dentist in educational requirements, an optometrist must get a bachelor degree in science plus a four-year of post graduate training in optometry school. Today, optometrists in the United States are licensed to some clinical rights: vision examination, mens eyeglasses and womens eyeglasses prescription, low vision care, vision therapy, pre- and post-operative care after a surgery and eye medications prescription. The last one is a recent expansion.
The education and training requirements of an ophthalmologist are similar to an oral surgeon, which add one year of internship and a minimum three years of hospital-based residency in ophthalmology to the requirement of an optometrist. Only an ophthalmologist is entitled to conduct an eye surgery.
If you just need a regular eye exam, it is your personal preference to choose an ophthalmologist or an optometrist. Although many optometrists cover the services including common eye problems and chronic eye diseases, such as dry eyes and glaucoma, only an ophthalmologist can provide complex diseases diagnosis and treatment, as well as eye surgeries. In this case, if you have been diagnosed with an unusual eye problem such as macular degeneration and cataracts, you’d better go to an ophthalmologist for professional treatment. Another common operation is co-management. If the patient’s problem is beyond his ability, an optometrist may refer to an ophthalmologist for medical treatment or a surgery, and then the patient is returned to the optometrist for further monitor and treatment.
Vision or health insurance is also an influential factor in choosing an optometrist or ophthalmologist, since they may be authorized eye care providers covered by the vision benefits. You can call the doctor’s office or find their information on the insurance company’s website. You should also be clear that whether you need to submit the insurance claim to the company after receiving eye care from the doctor, as well as the copayment issue. For old people, Medicare may also help in reducing eye care expense, although it does not cover routine eye exams. Under some situations such as insurance coverage and pre-existing eye problems, part of or entire eye exams may be covered.
The cooperation between your doctor and other medical and surgical specialists are also important, in case of some complex conditions. Your friends and colleagues may provide helpful recommendation in doctor selection.
Article Source:http://vision.firmoo.com/eye-exams/optometrists-and-ophthalmologists.html
Vision Library is the information source in area of vision care, including eyeglasses, sunglasses, contact lenses, sports protective eyewear, vision error and diseases, vision surgery, ageing and kid’s vision etc., solely sponsored by Firmoo.com, an emerging online optical store offering high quality eyewear at the lowest prices.Firmoo’s return and refund policy make any purchase risk-free.
Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/vision-articles/optometrists-and-ophthalmologists-1416983.html
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Early signs of cataracts such as declining visual clarity may be ok. You are still able to drive, watch television and so on. But if your daily lives are severely affected by advanced cataracts that can not be corrected by plastic eyeglasses or contacts, it is the right time to receive a cataract surgery. During a surgery, the clouding on your lens will be removed and an artificial intraocular lens will be implanted to restore your focusing power.
Certain medications and nutritional supplements may cause side effects during a cataract surgery, so that the patient should consultant the doctor that whether he should stop taking certain medications. Another critical issue is the selection of IOL type: a single vision IOL or a presbyopia-correcting IOL. Multifocal IOLs are always more expensive but they will provide more clear vision for people above 40. After determining the IOL type, another preparation before the surgery is the measurement of IOL power. For most of the patients, a cataract surgery will treat only one eye at a time, even if both of the eyes have cataracts. If necessary, the other eye will be corrected at least two weeks later.
On the day of the surgery, the patient may be asked to avoid drinking liquids and eye makeup. For eye relaxation, a sedative may be used and your eye skin will be comprehensively cleansed. Using an ultrasound-driven instrument, the doctor will make an incision into your eye, so that your lens’ cloud can be divided into small pieces. Another instrument will be used to get them out through the incision. The last two steps are implanting the IOL and suturing the incision.
On your way home after the surgery, a protective shield is needed to block sun rays. During the following few weeks, eye drops prescribed by your doctor should be applied several times every day. It is also important to avoid some things during the recovery period, such as heavy lifting, any activity that increases your eye stress, water contact, dust etc… For best outcome, you should also follow those special instructions from your doctor.
Even if the surgery has been performed successfully, certain complications may occur, such as glaucoma and intraocular pressure buildup. Other rare conditions include de-centered IOL, tearing of the posterior capsule and potential detached retinas. Some doctors think that detached retinas have no direct relation to the surgery, since some patients have already suffered from that before the surgery. Patients with high myopia may need to take a YAG laser capsulotomy procedure to correct a secondary Cataract, which increases the risk of detached retina. The most severe complication should be endophthalmitis, which causes widespread inflammation or infection. Fortunately, the rate of developing endophthalmitis is as low as 0.1%.
It is reported that as much as 95.5% of patients can restore normal 20/40 vision and sight-threatening complications occur on only 2% of the patients, most among which are old individuals. The most satisfying outcomes are always found on young people.
Article Source:http://vision.firmoo.com/vision-surgery/cataract-surgery-preparation-and-outcome.html
Vision Library is the information source in area of vision care, including eyeglasses, sunglasses, contact lenses, sports protective eyewear, vision error and diseases, vision surgery, ageing and kid’s vision etc., solely sponsored by Firmoo.com, an emerging online optical store offering high quality eyewear at the lowest prices.Firmoo’s return and refund policy make any purchase risk-free.
Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/vision-articles/cataract-surgery-preparation-and-outcome-1367126.html
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Regular comprehensive eye exams are crucial for both adults and children to maintain eye health. An eye exam can help adults not only formulate and update their eyewear prescription, but also search for any sign of common eye diseases. For children, eye exams are even more important since vision is so closely related to their study. If they have poor vision or image interpretation, they are most likely to have a poor performance in their study. Parents should take children to a related professional doctor for an eye examination as soon as they get a reading or learning difficulty, in order to find out the potential vision root.
Eyewear prescription is just a small portion of an eye exam. Its more significant role is to detect initial signs of eye diseases, preventing them from developing into more severe vision problems. The following two paragraphs is a description of some items for detection.
The first eye condition is refraction error, including myopia, hyperopic and astigmatism, all of which can be corrected using eyewear or refractive surgery. The second item that may be examined is amblyopia, which refers to the uneven development of the two eyes. Once found, amblyopia can be treated by covering the disabled eye, otherwise it will lead to permanent vision loss. A third search may be given to strabismus, which is also known as crossed or turned eyes in brief. People with this disease may have an unperfect eyes alignment, which may affect their depth perception and lead to amblyopia. Properly aligned eyes do not mean healthy eyes. So, the forth item may be teaming problems of the eyes. Signs of uncoordinated eyes (also named binocular vision problems) include headaches and eyestrain. An eye doctor should also pay attention to eye focusing problems during an eye exam. These problems may bother both children (resulted from incomplete focusing skills development) and aged people due natural decline, such as presbyopia.
Another part of examination items is related to more severe eye diseases. Early detection and subsequent treatment of eye diseases are essential to minimize the risk of lifelong vision impairment. Diabetic eye diseases are common and probably cause small blood vessel leaks or bleeding eye and macula swelling. Other eye diseases or health problems include glaucoma, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and so on. During eye exams, your doctor may check signs of these diseases using instruments or just by staring at your eye’s blood vessels and retina.
Vision screenings can never get the same effects from complete eye exams. A vision screening may test blur, muscle coordination and common eye diseases. These brief tests can only perform as an indicator for further eye exam, rather than replacing it. A driver’s license renewal just requires such a vision screening. Vision screenings can be conducted simply by school nurses, pediatricians, health care providers and volunteers. In contrast, a complete eye exam including all vision aspects testing must be carried out by an eye doctor, rather than incompetent family physicians and pediatricians. Only professional doctors can ensure all testing items and work out a proper personal treatment plan on the basis of the exam results.
If your doctor can not determine you eye problems, you may need to take a second exam after a period of time. For assured problems, a subsequent treatment plan will be made. Your eye doctor will prescribe different solutions for different eye problems. Corrective eyewear is commonly used for refractive errors. Binocular vision problems always require a vision therapy or strabismus surgery. For vision health maintenance or dry eyes relief, eye vitamins or vision nurture may be the right choice.
Article Source:http://vision.firmoo.com/eye-exams/eye-exams-health-of-eyes.html
Vision Library is the information source in area of vision care, including eyeglasses, sunglasses, contact lenses, sports protective eyewear, vision error and diseases, vision surgery, ageing and kid’s vision etc., solely sponsored by Firmoo.com, an emerging online optical store.
Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/vision-articles/eye-exams-are-crucial-for-the-health-of-eyes-1315198.html