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Thank you very much for taking the time to sign up for the No Blur! EyeMail Newsletter. The No Blur! EyeMail Newsletter is sent out approximately four times per year. The newsletter will contain the most recent developments in eyecare today, interesting information about your eyes, as well as a fun item. You can view the previous No Blur! EyeMails by clicking the online archive icon above. You can also send any comments or suggestions about the No Blur! EyeMail down in the related links section below.

 
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A Message From Dr. Maller

As more and more individuals proceed with refractive surgical procedures such as LASIK, a new problem has surfaced. The information contained in the examination regarding the unoperated eye such as the prescription, the central corneal thickness, the physical shape of the cornea, etc., is being lost forever as a result of the procedure. As a result of this, subsequent necessary procedures such as cataract surgery are becoming very difficult to perform because the calculations for the implant are critically dependant on this information. A web based refractive surgery database has been created and can be found at (No Longer Available) safeguardyoursight_com This is a service designed to store this vital pre-operative information so that in the future all of this information with the patient's permission can be accessed easily by the doctor. I know that on a personal level, I have provided care for many post refractive surgical patients and the pre-operative information on procedures done only 10 years earlier was impossible to obtain. The value of storing this information prior to the refractive surgical procedure is clear, and as far as I am aware, Safeguard Your Sight is the first to offer this service. Anyone considering a refractive surgical procedure should give serious thought to signing up for this service.

Dr. Maller

 

Risk Assessment For Post Refractive Surgical Ectasia

Although refractive surgery for many people yields a good visual result, there are certainly some complications that can arise as a result of refractive surgery. One of the significant visually disturbing complications is corneal ectasia. Ectasia is when the overall rounded structure of the cornea becomes irregular. Since ectasia can be visually debilitating, screening for risk factors to identify the possibility of developing ectasia after surgery needs to be improved. A study looked at 171 cases of ectasia. Of these cases of ectasia, 164 were from LASIK and 7 were from PRK. Comparing these cases with controls, it was found that ectasia developed more often when there was preoperative abnormal topography, younger age, higher myopia, thinner corneas prior to surgery and less residual stromal bed thickness. Of these, the preoperative abnormal topography was the greatest indicator that ectasia will develop after refractive surgery. Hopefully the data from this study as well as follow up studies will lead to better screening techniques to avoid post surgical ectatic complications.

 

Dry Eye, Cyclosporin and Punctal Occlusion

Dry eye is certainly a significant problem. A study looked at the effect of topical Cyclosporin (Restasis), punctal occlusion and a combination of both together and the objective effect on dry eye as well as the effect on reducing the need to use artificial tears. The Restasis was used twice a day and the punctal occlusion was done on the lower lids only using Parasol plugs. The effect at six months of either treatment or the combination improved the objective signs as well as the artificial tear use although the rates of improvement were different. The punctal occlusion regimens improved the initial wetness of the eye while the Cyclosporin improved the longer term ocular surface health.  There also may be an additive effect of both together.

 

Perforating Eye Injury

In a journal report, there was a case of a perforating eye injury from a nail gun. The nail entered the eye and was retained inside the eye. The vision was severely decreased as would be expected in this type of injury. Through timely and extensive surgery, the eye was returned to final best corrected vision of 20/20. This case once again shows the importance of proper training and use of safety equipment. With the proper safety equipment this might have been totally prevented. Fortunately in this case, timely care resulted in a good outcome for this individual.

 

Contact Lenses and Solutions Compatibility

Disposable contact lenses have certainly become widely used and along with these have been a somewhat casual selection process for lens solutions. A study was undertaken to test the compatibility of some of the common solutions along with some of the common disposable lenses that are currently being used. As the study showed, not all of the solutions are universally compatible with all of the lens types. I have put a summary of the lenses and solutions compatibility on my website at http://www.noblur.com/solut.html

 

Amber Tinted Contact Lenses To Enhance Athletic Performance

Athletes are always looking for anything that will enhance their performance and give them an "edge." One such area that has been discussed heavily is the subject of increasing contrast sensitivity by using amber sport-tinted contact lenses. The idea behind this is that the sharper and crisper the vision is made, the more likely that the athletic performance will be maximized. Professional and collegiate football athletes were enrolled in a study to test the effect of these vision enhancing contact lenses. The amber contact lenses were compared with clear contact lenses as well as no contact lenses when those specific athletes required no vision correction. The results of the study showed a significant improvement in the contrast sensitivity in the group wearing the amber sport-tinted lenses, however the clinical benefits were not clearly demonstrated. This means that although there is improvement in the contrast sensitivity by wearing these special tinted lenses, the study was not able to show that the athletic performance would be enhanced.

 

Just For Fun - The Package

Sometimes while on the web, I will come across some item that is just fun. I have incorporated this into the website because everyone should have a little fun occasionally. I have decided to put at least one "fun" thing into each newsletter. I hope that you enjoy it. This particular item is called The Package. You have a package delivered that presents you with some interesting challenges. In addition to the actual puzzles, you are on a timer. There are limited instructions and it will require you to be a bit creative. :-) Good Luck! You can find this puzzle at The Package.