25% Off Childrens’ Eyeglasses at The Eye Care & Surgery Center

As parents are getting their children ready for the “Back to School” season, The Eye Care & Surgery Center is pleased to offer a 25% discount on kids eyewear andeyeglasses through September 30, 2014. We are featuring eyeglass frames from Lacoste™, Nike, Hello Kitty, Converse®, Ray Ban®, Nine West, Miraflex and Flexon, to name some of the popular kid’s eyeglasses we offer.  

To schedule an eye exam or eyeglass selection and fitting, please call The Eye Care & Surgery Center at 908-789-8999, visit The Eye Care & Surgery Center or facebook.com/eyecareandsurgerycenter.

Inflammation Marker Indicates Macular Degeneration Risk

CRP (c-reactive protein) is an inflammation marker that can be tested as part of a routine blood test. We now know that the risk of macular degeneration (AMD) is correlated with the findings of the CRP (c-reactive proteins) test in men and women according to researchers from Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston who reported in JAMA Ophthalmology.

The findings of these studies showed that there was a significantly increased risk of AMD for those patients with high versus low CRP levels and those with high CRP levels also had a significantly increased risk of neovascular or Wet AMD-a leading cause of vision loss among seniors. The researchers concluded that elevated levels of CRP predict greater future risk of AMD. It is believed that this information might shed light on underlying mechanisms and could be of clinical help in the identification of persons at high risk of AMD who may benefit from increased adherence to lifestyle recommendations, eye examination schedules and therapeutic protocols.

If you or someone you know has a question about CRP tests and the risk of age related macular degeneration (AMD) please call The Eye Care & Surgery Center at 908-789-8999, visit The Eye Care & Surgery Center or facebook.com/eyecareandsurgerycenter to schedule an appointment.

With locations at 592 Springfield Avenue, Westfield, New Jersey 07090, 10 Mountain Boulevard, Warren, New Jersey 07059 and 517 Route One South, Suite 1100, Iselin, New Jersey 08830, The Eye Care & Surgery Center is a leading NJ eye care practice conveniently located for patients from throughout central and northern New Jersey.

Time for Kids School Eye Exams

Now is the time to get children ready for heading back to school. An important item on the back to school “readiness” checklist should include an eye exam. While most parents can easily observe that children today operate in a very intense and demanding visual environment as they read, write, play sports, use computers and tablets-but the eye doctors at The Eye Care & Surgery Center want to be sure to remind parents that children use their eyes and vision as critical tools in the learning process.  

The most frequent eye problems we find in school age kids are the common vision problems of nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism. Sometimes, not having clear vision in the classroom can lead to the undeserved perception of a behavioral problem or attention problem. What we know is that kids are often unable to verbalize that they have a vision problem as they just don’t recognize it. The earlier a vision problem is detected and treated, the more likely treatment will be successful.

If you or someone you know needs a Back to School eye exam for children, please come in and see us at The Eye Care & Surgery Center at 908-789-8999, visit The Eye Care & Surgery Center or facebook.com/eyecareandsurgerycenter.

With locations at 592 Springfield Avenue, Westfield, New Jersey 07090, 10 Mountain Boulevard, Warren, New Jersey 07059 and 517 Route One South, Suite 1100, Iselin, New Jersey 08830, The Eye Care & Surgery Center is a leading NJ eye care practice conveniently located for patients from throughout central and northern New Jersey.

Awareness of Cataract Symptoms Important

The Eye Care & Surgery Center believes people-especially seniors-should be aware of the symptoms of cataracts and how a cataract can impact vision, quality of life and general mobility and safety.

What is a Cataract?

A cataract is a clouding of the crystalline lens of the eye preventing light rays from passing through it easily. Cataracts are not a growth or a film over the eye.

Who Gets Cataracts?

More than 20 million Americans age 40 and older have cataracts and more than half of all Americans over 65 have some degree of cataract development. In fact cataracts are a leading cause of vision loss among seniors.

What Are the Symptoms of Cataracts?

Cataracts cause a clouding and blurring of vision. For many patients a cataract can start out slowly and have little effect on vision at first. But, as the cataract becomes denser, so does the impact on vision. The most common symptoms that bother patients with cataracts can include blurring of vision, sensitivity to light and glare, double vision in one eye, poor night vision, fading or yellowing of colors and frequent changes in glasses or contact lens prescriptions.

How Do Cataracts & Vision Loss Affect Daily Life?

Poor vision in seniors is often associated with premature or accelerated mental decline. Reduced vision also challenges the safety and mobility of patients resulting in putting patients at increased risk for orthopedic injury-especially hip fracture. So, helping seniors restore vision with cataract surgery has an important place in securing senior health, well being, mobility, safety and mental state.

When cataracts begin to interfere with daily activities or with patient comfort, mobility and safety, they can be treated surgically. Cataract surgery is one of the safest and most frequently performed surgeries in the United States. Today, we have a full range of lens implants available that allow us to correct nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism and even near vision problems after cataract surgery, as well as distance vision, without requiring bifocals or reading glasses for the vast majority of patients.

If you or someone you know has questions about symptoms of cataracts, cataract surgery or lens implants please feel free to call The Eye Care & Surgery Center at 908-789-8999, visit The Eye Care & Surgery Center or facebook.com/eyecareandsurgerycenter to schedule an appointment.

With locations at 592 Springfield Avenue, Westfield, New Jersey 07090, 10 Mountain Boulevard, Warren, New Jersey 07059 and 517 Route One South, Suite 1100, Iselin, New Jersey 08830, The Eye Care & Surgery Center is a leading NJ eye care practice conveniently located for patients from throughout central and northern New Jersey.

iPad Nook Kindle May Help Glaucoma Patients Read

Patients with glaucoma often read slower when reading silently for long periods of time and are more likely to have their reading speed decrease over time, possibly as a result of the reading fatigue caused by contrast loss and visual field defects. Fortunately, recent studies suggest that technological solutions such as e-readers like the iPad, Nook and Kindle along with the apps that are developed for them may very well help glaucoma patients read more comfortably.

Investigators reporting in Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science shared information about improved reading comfort and performance for glaucoma patients using these devices possible as a result of the ability to enhance contrast, font size and other features of the display screens.

If you or someone you know has questions about help with reading for glaucoma patients by using e-readers such as the iPad, Nook or Kindle should call The Eye Care & Surgery Center at 908-789-8999, visit The Eye Care & Surgery Center or facebook.com/eyecareandsurgerycenter to schedule an appointment.

With locations at 592 Springfield Avenue, Westfield, New Jersey 07090, 10 Mountain Boulevard, Warren, New Jersey 07059 and 517 Route One South, Suite 1100, Iselin, New Jersey 08830, The Eye Care & Surgery Center is a leading NJ eye care practice conveniently located for patients from throughout central and northern New Jersey.

Use Caution to Avoid Fireworks Eye Injury on July 4th

The Eye Care & Surgery Center cautions our community to use due caution and take some modest precautions to avoid eye injury from fireworks around the July 4^th holiday. People should fireworks eye safety an important consideration as historically eye injuries from fireworks are the second most frequent injury we see from the emergency room each July 4^th weekend. Some common sense precautions we can take begin with restricting kid’s access to fireworks. The best defense against kids suffering severe eye injuries and burns is to not let kids play with any fireworks. Do not purchase, use or store fireworks of any type and attend only authorized public fireworks displays conducted by licensed operators, but be aware that even professional displays can be dangerous. However, if an eye accident does occur, there are a few things you should know:

·         Do not rub the eye.

·         Do not attempt to rinse out the eye. This can be even more damaging than rubbing.

·         Do not apply pressure to the eye itself-but protecting the eye from further contact with any item, including the person’s hand.

·         Do not stop for medicine! Over-the-counter pain relievers will not do much to relieve pain. Aspirin (should never be given to children) and ibuprofen can thin the blood, increasing bleeding. Take the person to the emergency room at once.

·         Do not apply ointments or drops. They may not be sterile and may make the area around the eye slippery and harder for the doctor to examine.

Once you are seen in the emergency room please feel free to have them call The Eye Care & SurgeryCenter at 908-789-8999 as we always have an eye doctor “on call” to provide consultation and continued care for you.

If you or someone you know has questions about fireworks eye safety and eye injuries please feel free to call The Eye Care & Surgery Center at 908-789-8999, visit The Eye Care & Surgery Center or facebook.com/eyecareandsurgerycenter to schedule an appointment.

With locations at 592 Springfield Avenue, Westfield, New Jersey 07090, 10 Mountain Boulevard, Warren, New Jersey 07059 and 517 Route One South, Suite 1100, Iselin, New Jersey 08830, The Eye Care & Surgery Center is a leading NJ eye care practice conveniently located for patients from throughout central and northern New Jersey.

Macular Degeneration (AMD) Risk Increased with Aspirin Use

The Eye Care & Surgery Center cautions people taking aspirin that while widely used, aspirin may increase your risk of macular degeneration (AMD). Aspirin is routinely taken on an “over-the –counter” basis for headaches, body ache,  fever and even by patients who are at high risk of heart attack due to atherosclerosis, as aspirin has excellent anticoagulant properties.

The Beaver Dam Eye Study found that regular aspirin use 10 years prior to eye examination was associated with late AMD, with estimated incidence of 1.76 percent, compared to 1.03 percent in non-aspirin users. Although these associations appear small they are in fact  statistically significant as regular aspirin use 10 years prior to eye examination was significantly associated with the “wet” form of AMD, which accounts for 10 percent of all AMD cases, but is responsible for the majority of functional blindness attributed to the disease. Another Australian study found that regular aspirin users developed wet AMD an astounding 24.5 percent of the time. Even after adjusting for other risk factors like age, sex, smoking, history of heart disease and body mass index, regular aspirin users still had a higher risk of developing wet AMD. These researchers concluded, “Regular aspirin use is associated with increased risk of incident neovascular [Wet] AMD, independent of history of cardiovascular disease and smoking.”

Alternatives to Aspirin

If you’re a regular aspirin user, you should get a thorough eye exam as soon as possible to determine your AMD status as AMD often doesn’t show any symptoms until well after the problem has advanced. Please call The Eye Care & Surgery Center at 908-789-8999, visit The Eye Care & Surgery Center or facebook.com/eyecareandsurgerycenter to schedule an appointment.

With locations at 592 Springfield Avenue, Westfield, New Jersey 07090, 10 Mountain Boulevard, Warren, New Jersey 07059 and 517 Route One South, Suite 1100, Iselin, New Jersey 08830, The Eye Care & Surgery Center is a leading NJ eye care practice conveniently located for patients from throughout central and northern New Jersey.