Zeiss Engineers New Technology for Progressive Eyeglass Lenses
Improved Progressive Lens Design from Zeiss
Engineered for visual satisfaction. GT2™ progressive lenses by ZEISS have been carefully engineered around the visual and physiological requirements of the wearer using the proven total aberration control of ZEISS Optical Optimization & Management. This process maximizes both the physiological and optical interaction of the lens design with the visual system of the wearer to ensure the most natural, satisfying viewing experience possible. (Excerpt from www.vision.zeiss.com)
Key features and benefits of the GT2™ include the following:
- Wide, clear distance with good peripheral vision
- Ergonomically designed near zone for easier and more comfortable reading
- Small fitting height allowing for use in smaller frames
- Control of optical aberrations eliminating much of the distortion in the peripheral lens
What are the Odds of Vision Loss Between Contact Lens Wear and LASIK Refractive Surgery?
According to a study in Australia, researchers discovered that the risk of vision loss in one procedure of LASIK is equal to that of 10 years of constant contact lens wear. The study was conducted over a 12-month period using a prospective surveillance technique.
Why See a COVD Fellow for Your Special Vision Needs
An eye doctor who is a Fellow of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development (F.C.O.V.D.) evaluates your eyes and vision using the behavioral approach to assess how the visual system affects human development, individual performance, and overall quality of life. This means that the FCOVD optometrist is concerned about: Your vision and how it affects and is affected by your general health, the clearness of vision at distance and near (visual acuity), normal and abnormal eye teaming (binocular vision), eye movement control (oculomotor function), eye focusing ability (accommodation), the development of your visual information processing skills (visual perceptual-motor system), vision in relationship to learning problems, preventive or rehabilitative care to help avoid or overcome visual problems, and the diagnosis, treatment, and management of your visual problems through glasses, contact lenses, and vision therapy.
COVD has certified Fellows in the United States, Canada and other countries throughout the world. Dr. David Dalesio received his Fellowship status in 2007 after meeting the rigorous criteria of the COVD International Examination and Certification Board.
More information about the organization can be found on their web site at www.covd.org.
Too Much Beef Puts Eyes “At Steak” for Age Related Macular Degeneration
A study¹ published in The American Journal of Epidemiology in April 2009 reported that choosing chicken over steak is healthy for the eyes! It may actually lower the risk for developing Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD – a degenerative eye disease that may lead to severe loss of central vision in aging adults) by 50%. The study examined 6,734 subjects between the ages of 58 and 69 who lived in Melbourne, Australia. The study was conducted over a 13 year period.
The researchers concluded that individuals who ate red meat 10 times per week or more were 50% more likely to develop AMD in later years. Subjects who ate chicken 3 times per week, however, cut their risk for this potentially site-threatening eye disease by nearly 50%.
There are still many variables that the study did not take into account, such as the type or quality of the red meat eaten during the study and what other types of food the subjects ate or didn’t eat. But, according to Dr. E. Michael Geiger, the industry relations chairman of the Optometric Nutrition Society, “One of the factors associated with AMD is that there is less nutrition flowing to the macula and less cellular waste being removed…causing a lowering of central visual acuity. Some nutraceuticals that we advise for AMD are intended to increase blood circulation.”²
According to Dr. Geiger, this and other studies recommend that red meat intake be limited to once a week.³
¹Chong EW, Simpson JA, Robman LD, et al. Red meat and chicken consumption and its association with age-related macular degeneration. Am J Epidemiol 2009 April 1: 169(7): 867-76.
²News Review: Too Much Beef Puts Eyes ‘At Steak’ for AMD. Rev of Optom 2009 April 15: 6
³Sinha R, Cross AJ, Graubard BI, et al. Meat intake and mortality: a prospective study of over half a million people. Arch Intern Med 2009 March 23; 169(6): 562-71
News Press article on Dr. Dalesio’s Vision Therapy practice
Please follow the link to read the article about Dr. Dalesio’s Vision Therapy practice, the only one in Southwest Florida!
http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=93792725445&h=CUNag&u=oexDI&ref=mf
When a Bright Child has Trouble Reading
Or, “What is a ‘Learning-related Vision Problem’”?
Why are there so many children, who may even have “perfect eyesight” as diagnosed by their eye doctors, suffering from poor grades, having trouble keeping up with their peers, or even being diagnosed with attention-deficit disorder? Did you know that many of these children have undiagnosed vision disorders that can be detected and corrected quickly and forever?
A child may have perfect, 20/20 eyesight but his or her vision may be poor. The difference is that sight is the ability to see, a function most of us have at birth whereas vision, however, is the ability to understand what we see, and is a learned process. It is estimated that 1 out of every 6 children in the United States is 2 or more grade levels behind in reading. Eighty percent of these children have been found by Optometrists to have difficulty in eye control and coordination. Many of these children feel they are different or dumb, lack self-esteem, and may even drop out from school or have a less-than-full life.
What is the Cure?
Vision therapy, performed by Behavioral Optometrists (Optometrists who specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of learning-related vision disorders), many of whom are Fellowship-trained, is the treatment that cures these children. Through a series of in-office therapy sessions and at-home computerized eye-exercise programs, the patient gains years of reading comprehension, scholastic advancement, and the self-confidence needed to perform at a higher level.
For more information, please call Fort Myers Eye Associates at 239.437.2004. Dr. David Dalesio earned his esteemed Fellowship of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development (F.C.O.V.D.) and has been diagnosing and treating children with learning-related vision problems for over ten years. It is in the smiling faces of every vision therapy success story that reminds Dr. Dalesio why he specialized in this field in the first place. The children, parents, and teachers all recognize the drastic improvements made by the vision therapy sessions, even before the treatment has come to an end.
Treatment of Panic Attack with Eye Exercises
An interesting new finding, as reported in a recent article in the “Journal of Behavioral Optometry”, may provide effective and expedient treatment for panic attacks. By performing Convergence Therapy (as described below), it is possible to alleviate panic attack, non-cardiac chest pain, and other vagally mediated symptoms.
This type of therapy functions as a vagal maneuver (affecting the vagas nerve and reflexes), activating the oculocardiac reflex (OCR) by traction of the eye muscles involved in these exercises (the medial recti). Panic attacks and pain subside within 20 to 60 seconds of initiating treatment. It has also been suggested to attempt this technique to those who suffer gastric disturbances, situational breathing distress, and perhaps even with the prodromal stages of migraine.
METHOD FOR OCULOCARDIAC CONVERGENCE THERAPY:
This technique may be done in any posture but is probably best performed while seated. Any target (such as a finger, a pen, or a printed card of any sort) is centered before the face at a distance of about four to six inches. A downward gaze position is not a preferred posture, since that angle reduces the role of the medial recti in convergence and they are the muscles that are most stimulatory to the OCR. The patient is to converge (the normal inward eye movement that occurs when looking at something close up) to the near-point target and hold the fixation for about two seconds, then look to a distant target ten or more feet away, for about two seconds. This is considered one cycle. There is no need to move the near target inward (in a “tromboning” fashion) as this will reduce the intensity of the exercise.
These near-to-far cycles are repeated for 20 to 60 seconds. If there has been no relief of the panic attack or chest pain in a minute or less, then the usual medications should be taken. The procedure may be repeated as necessary. The response appears to be further enhanced by having the patient attempt to visualize (be mentally aware of) the distance between the near and distance targets.
“Neuroplasticity: Teaching an Old Brain New Tricks”
According to an article of the same name in the January 2009 issue of Review of Optometry written by Dominick M. Maino, O.D., M.Ed., research now shows that adults do exhibit neuroplasticity. The phrase “neuroplasticity” refers to the ability of the brain to continue to develop and change, and even to show improvement after insult and injury.
Illustration of the Brain and Location of Brain Functions
There is quite a bit of research being done on this subject lately. There has been a “sea change” in the study of neuroplasticity, which means a transformation of such magnitude that it alters the very nature of the subject.
According to Rudraprosad Chakrabory, M.D., D.P.M., who is senior resident at the Ranchi Institute of Neuropsychiatry and Allied Sciences, “Neuroplasticity research has established, beyond doubt, that instead of being a static cell mass, our brain is actually a dynamic system of neural networks that has the capability of significant growth under favorable circumstances.”
“This information coincides with the many positive results obtained by Behavioral Optometrists from their older patients who have received Vision Therapy,” reports Dr. David Dalesio. “It was always taught and believed by most Optometrists and Ophthalmologists that patients with “lazy eyes” (amblyopia), eye turns (strabismus), and many other learning-related vision problems could only benefit if they were caught and treated at a very early age. It is becoming more and more obvious that older patients, from teenagers to the elderly (as for stroke victims), may benefit from vision therapy. I have seen it over and over in my practice. It’s nice to see the neurological scientific research finally backing up these results.”
Handheld Device Use Poses More Stress on the Eyes and Body than Reading Printed Copy
Handheld Devices Cause Body and Eye Strain
According to a December 2008 article in Primary Care Optometry News, while attending a press conference at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Optometry, Dr. Yu-Chi Tai reported on the significant differences between reading a handheld device and printed material. Researchers at the Pacific University College of Optometry’s Vision Performance Institute reported that these significant differences include the following:
- Viewing Distances – determined to be closer when test subjects read handheld devices causing more strain on the eyes and body
- Blink Frequency – found to be much lower in test subjects reading a handheld versus hard copy which can lead to dry eye symptoms
- Subjective Discomfort – reported to be greater and manifested as neck pain and eye strain, especially when playing games and searching a database
Dr. Tai reported that “after only 10 minutes of use, subjects experienced visual and body stress”. She concluded that “what you’re holding in your hand is more demanding on your focusing system and could affect your eye health if the distance is not appropriate.”
With Computer Vision Syndrome, research has shown that computer screens cause more strain on the eyes than printed material due to the inability for the visual system to “hold focus” on the pixels as the edges of the pixels are blurred. In printed material, the edges of letters are crisp lending to much less strain on the eyes’ focusing system. This appears to be the same issue with handheld devices, although the screens are smaller causing even more strain and shorter viewing distances.
Improved Comfort for CIBA VISION® Night & Day® Contact Lenses
“Something new is in the AIR”, according to CIBA Vision®. The company has rolled out a whole new line of contact lenses as either completely new designs or marked improvements on previous designs. The most recent addition includes the Air Optix™ NIGHT & DAY® Aqua, which will enter the market on March 16th this year. The company asserts that “not only does Air Optix™ NIGHT & DAY® Aqua have the highest oxygen transmissibility of any available soft contact lens, this innovative lens also offers significant insertion comfort and handling upgrades, with no re-fit required.”
These improvements include greater comfort (patients preferred the new design more than 2 to 1 over the original NIGHT & DAY lens) and ease of insertion with an added visibility tint and inversion indicator. It is the added AQUA Moisture System that improves the comfort of the lenses day after day, even when worn overnight.
New and Improved NIGHT & DAY Contact Lenses
