The story of 43-year-old Shannon Davis underscores the urgency of regular eye check-ups. Glaucoma is responsible for irreversible vision loss by damaging the optic nerve, and it’s the leading cause of blindness worldwide. Davis, diagnosed with advanced glaucoma, experienced significant vision loss, rendering him legally blind, and he could not work or drive. After various treatments and surgeries, Davis’s glaucoma has stabilized over the past two years.

Ophthalmologist Dr. Noor Ali from Canberra, Australia, who oversees Davis’s care, highlights that glaucoma often goes unnoticed until substantial vision loss occurs. Thus, emphasizing the crucial need for early detection screening.

What Causes Glaucoma?

“No symptoms, no headaches, nothing that was obvious,” says Davis in disbelief that this happened to him. In its early stages, glaucoma has no symptoms, hence the term ‘silent thief.’ Regular glaucoma screenings are your best defense, especially if you face certain risk factors such as:

• Being extremely near-sighted
• Genetic history of glaucoma
• Adults over 40 years of age
• Black Americans over 35
• Underlying disease (such as diabetes)
• Obesity
• Poor overall health (inactive, deficient nutritional diet, etc.)

What Are the Symptoms of Glaucoma?

Every person is different, and glaucoma may show a few warning signs. However, generally when symptoms do appear, the condition is usually advanced. Typical symptoms include:

What Are My Options if I Have Glaucoma?

Allowing glaucoma to progress without proper treatment will result in vision loss or blindness. In some cases, eye drops or other medications may suffice. For advanced instances, glaucoma surgery is recommended. There are many different types of glaucoma surgery. Your ophthalmologist will explain the differences between each, and together, you can determine which procedure is best for your situation.

What Does Glaucoma Surgery Entail?

Glaucoma surgery aims to lower the eye’s intraocular pressure (IOP), the primary modifiable risk factor, to prevent further damage to the optic nerve. By reducing the IOP, the surgery helps halt ongoing damage to the optic nerve, thus preserving vision. At Zen Eye Institute, our ophthalmologist, Dr. Charles Zenzen, conducts glaucoma surgery on an outpatient basis, eliminating the need for a hospital stay. This surgery may also be combined with cataract surgery. For more information, please contact our office.

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Zen Eye Institute, formally Rohr Eye & Laser Center, has served the greater Grand Blanc area for over twenty years. Now operating under Dr. Charles Zenzen, we offer comprehensive medical and surgical eye care treating various conditions and diseases such as cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic eye disease, dry eyes, and more. For exceptional eye care at our state-of-the-art practice, call (810) 579-0202 to make an appointment today! 

Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: https://www.cpsmi.com

Getting routine eye exams is vital to being proactive with your health management. During a comprehensive eye examination, your eye specialist will screen for prevalent eye conditions, evaluate the coordination of your eyes, and much more. Diseases such as diabetes and hypertension are often detected during eye exams.

At Zen Eye Institute, Our Comprehensive Eye Exam Includes Measuring Your Visual Acuity – But What Exactly Does This Entail?  

Visual acuity refers to the clarity or sharpness of vision. It measures how well an individual can discern the details and shapes of objects at a distance. Several tests measure visual acuity, but the Snellen chart test is the most common.

The Snellen chart displays letters of progressively smaller sizes, and the individual being tested is asked to read these letters from a specific distance, usually 20 feet. The results are often expressed as a fraction, such as 20/20. The top number refers to the distance from the chart, and the bottom number indicates the distance at which a person with normal eyesight could read the same line you correctly read.

For instance, if you have 20/40 vision, you need to be 20 feet away to read a letter that a person with normal eyesight could read from 40 feet away.

There are also visual acuity tests to measure near vision. These often involve reading from a card held about 14 inches away from the eyes.

It’s essential to regularly test visual acuity because it can identify vision changes that might require corrective lenses or other treatments.

Other Components of a Comprehensive Eye Exam

Measuring your visual acuity is just one component of a comprehensive eye exam. We test to ensure that your eyes are properly working together, can track moving objects, access a full spectrum of colors, detect blind spots, and determine your perception of depth. We also measure the pressure in your eyes with a harmless puff of air to test for Glaucoma.

Other screening may include ophthalmoscopy, which examines the interior structures of the eye, such as your blood vessels, retina, and optic nerve, to diagnose and monitor a multitude of ocular and systemic conditions. Retinal imaging and screening slit lamp examinations are other tools ophthalmologists can use to help diagnose various eye conditions and diseases if symptoms suggest.

What Is a Phoropter?

A phoropter, or a refractor, is the large instrument placed in front of a patient’s face during an eye examination. The phoropter allows the eye care specialist to determine the patient’s eyeglass prescription, often referred to as “refraction.” This tool has various lenses of different strengths that can be rotated into the patient’s view, allowing the optometrist or ophthalmologist to determine the best lens power for each eye to provide the sharpest vision.

How Often Should I Get a Comprehensive Eye Exam?

Your eye doctor will typically advise you to undergo a comprehensive eye exam annually. However, if pre-existing conditions elevate your risk, you may be advised to have exams more regularly.

When did you last undergo a thorough eye check-up? Delay no further — contact Zen Eye Institute to book your eye evaluation.

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Zen Eye Institute, formally Rohr Eye & Laser Center, has served the greater Grand Blanc area for over twenty years. Now operating under Dr. Charles Zenzen, we offer comprehensive medical and surgical eye care treating various conditions and diseases such as cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic eye disease, dry eyes, and more. For exceptional eye care at our state-of-the-art practice, call (810) 579-0202 to make an appointment today! 

Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: https://www.cpsmi.com

The prescription for preventing myopia in children is easier than you might imagine: sunlight. This unbelievably simple tactic is the response to a growing public health crisis of nearsightedness. 

Over the past 30 years, nearsightedness in children has increased at an alarming rate. Estimates show that about 40 percent of kids ages six to 19 years old are nearsighted, and the rate is double in Asia. By 2050, half of the world’s population could be nearsighted if nothing is done to delay the rise. 

When the eye grows too long from front to back, nearsightedness arises, which gives people good vision close up, but terrible distance vision. Research has shown that severe myopia in children increases their risk of eye issues later in life. These blinding eye problems include retinal detachment, glaucoma, early cataracts, and myopic maculopathy. 

Genetics also plays a role in developing myopia, but the swift surge suggests that environmental factors might also be to blame. With an epidemic of children spending more time on their screens and less time outdoors, experts suggest this can put them at a higher risk of developing nearsightedness. 

Though it is unclear why sunlight helps protect against nearsightedness. One theory suggests that sunlight boosts dopamine levels in the eye, influencing its growth rate. Another theory suggests that prolonged close-up tasks, like reading or computer work without breaks, can promote abnormal eye growth.

Some options for slowing myopia in children include atropine eye drops and multifocal contact lenses. Both have been effectively studied and proven to slow the progression of nearsightedness. 

The most obvious option, of course, is to limit screen time and instead encourage at least one to two hours of outdoor time every day. 

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Zen Eye Institute, formally Rohr Eye & Laser Center, has served the greater Grand Blanc area for over twenty years. Now operating under Dr. Charles Zenzen, we offer comprehensive medical and surgical eye care treating various conditions and diseases such as cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic eye disease, dry eyes, and more. For exceptional eye care at our state-of-the-art practice, call (810) 579-0202 to make an appointment today! 

Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: https://www.cpsmi.com/ 

A severe form of macular degeneration called geographic atrophy is the leading cause of irreversible vision loss in adults over 50. Geographic atrophy impacts 1 million people in the United States.

While macular degeneration is typically considered an incurable eye disease, and its origins are unknown, it has been determined that genetic and environmental factors can contribute to the development of the disease. 

Clinical trials are underway at Willis Eye/Mid Atlantic Retina for Syfovre, the first and only drug to treat this advanced form of macular degeneration, geographic atrophy, which can lead to blindness. While Syfovre has been proven to slow the progression of advanced macular degeneration, it will not reverse or cure the disease. 

Dr. Sunir Garg at Willis Eye said, “It’s a big deal for us because we went from not having anything to finally having something and that is a monumental achievement in our profession. It reduces the inflammation, and the inflammation is what is causing the damage. As time goes on, we can help them [patients] better protect their vision for a longer period of time.” 

Dr. Eleonora Lad, associate professor of ophthalmology at Duke University Medical Center, helped to oversee the clinical study of Syfovre. She said the new treatment is a “game changer” and “the beginning of a new treatment era for patients with geographic atrophy.” 

Macular degeneration experts such as Dr. Steven Schwartz of the UCLA Stein Eye Institute said the FDA’s approval is “very positive” for patients with unmet needs who need to preserve their vision. He said, “It’s particularly important while we continue to rapidly develop stem cell therapies that hold the promise for restoring vision already lost to this horrifying all-to-common cause of central blindness.” 

If you suffer from vision loss or need to schedule an exam to see an ophthalmologist, contact the doctors at Zen Eye Institute today.

Zen Eye Institute, formally Rohr Eye & Laser Center, has served the greater Grand Blanc area for over twenty years. Now operating under Dr. Charles Zenzen, we offer comprehensive medical and surgical eye care treating various conditions and diseases such as cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic eye disease, dry eyes, and more. For exceptional eye care at our state-of-the-art practice, call (810) 579-0202 to make an appointment today! 

Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: https://www.cpsmi.com/ 

A novel study in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, and the University of Newcastle found that smokers develop age-related macular degeneration five-and-a-half years earlier than non-smokers. Moreover, people who suffer from second-hand smoke are twice as likely to develop age-related macular degeneration. 

Jude Stern, head of Knowledge Management from the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness said, “Smoking increases your risk of developing serious eye conditions and permanent sight loss. Quitting smoking and having regular eye tests can help improve eye health and prevent avoidable sight loss.” 

The only way to restore vision after a cataract diagnosis is to surgically remove and replace the cloudy lens. Annually, roughly 94 million people have significant or extreme distance vision impairment or blindness due to undiagnosed cataracts. 

Cataracts are the world’s leading cause of blindness and can develop slowly without pain. 

People who use e-cigarettes are not safe, either: these devices can produce free radicals, damaging DNA and leading to cataracts or poor vision. Also, retinal function might be diminished by the use of e-cigarettes since they can reduce blood flow to the eyes, leading to an increased risk of eye cancer. 

Vinayak Prasad, head of the No Tobacco Unit at the World Health Organization said, “WHO urges everyone not to use tobacco and e-cigarettes to protect their overall health, including eye health.” 

There are several other tactics people can try to limit their risk of cataracts, including the following lifestyle changes: 

• Quit smoking
• Reduce alcohol consumption
• Limit UV exposure
• Get routine eye exams
• Control related conditions (hypertension, obesity, chronic kidney disease, diabetes)
• Reduce your weight
• Ingest antioxidants (omega-3, lutein, zeaxanthin, flaxseed, bilberry, turmeric, walnuts)

Cataracts might seem inevitable, but cutting your risk can be an easy way to mitigate a diagnosis. 

Are you suffering from cataracts? Contact the experts at Zen Eye Institute to schedule a consultation today. 

Rohr Eye & Laser Center is now Zen Eye Institute! We offer the most advanced technology available to provide personalized and extraordinary care to our patients. Whether your goal is to maintain or improve your natural vision, we are here to help you. Call us at 877-579-0202 to learn more.

Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: https://www.cpsmi.com

Age-related cataracts can affect both eyes, requiring the endogenic lens to be replaced with an artificial Intraocular Lens (IOL) surgically. Generally, there is a lapse in time between surgeries for each eye, but the surgery can be performed on both eyes on the same day.

A study by Cochrane suggests that there are unlikely to be any large, clinically significant differences between both approaches, though the overall quality was assessed as moderate to very low.

Several advantages to performing the surgery in both eyes simultaneously include fewer hospital visits, faster bilateral vision recovery, and lower procedure costs. 

Risks of simultaneously performing cataract surgery in both eyes consist of developing a postoperative complication in both eyes, and not being able to use the visual acuity from the first operation during the second procedure, since there would only be one. 

The Cochrane review authors noted that the complications generally occurred up to three months post-op, and there were little- to no differences noted between the two methods. Most of the study results were limited by an overall small number of endophthalmitis, postoperative complications, and a lack of specific data, among other variables. 

Thomas Kohnen, MD, PhD, chair of the German Commission for Refractive Surgery (KRC), set up by the German Society of Ophthalmology (DOG), and the Professional Association of German Ophthalmologists (BVA) at the University Clinic Frankfurt, said, “In Germany, there is only very little data on ISBCS because it is barely a topic here. “We have very good medical infrastructure with widespread and prompt ophthalmological care, such that even people living in the countryside do not have to travel great distances or experience long waiting times for a first or second cataract surgery, which is different from many places abroad. The procedure with bilateral operations on the same day is not recommended in the guidelines from our professional societies, [because] any complications that occur postoperatively could potentially entail lengthy legal liability procedures for the surgeons.”

In Germany, sequential bilateral cataract surgery is typically performed with two outpatient operations spaced several days (or weeks) apart. Medical, social, or personal reasons can create exceptions to the rule, requiring both eyes to be operated on with a shorter amount of time between each procedure, under general anesthesia in one sitting, or with an overnight gap. 

Rohr Eye & Laser Center offers the most advanced technology available to provide personalized and extraordinary care to our patients. Whether your goal is to maintain or improve your natural vision, we are here to help you. Call us at 877-579-0202 to learn more.Written by the digital marketing team at Creative Programs & Systems: https://www.cpsmi.com/