Enjoy Library Lovers’ Month with Clear Vision

February is Library Lovers’ Month…a great time to celebrate how libraries of all types benefit our communities. It’s also a great time to pick up a book and rekindle your love of reading.

However, if you are farsighted and have trouble focusing on printed items close-up, you may become discouraged by the need to constantly locate your glasses in order to read. If farsightedness has plagued your eyesight for years, Dr. O'Day at Charleston Cornea & Refractive Surgery may be able to help. Dr. O'Day has performed thousands of LASIK procedures in Charleston, helping many farsighted patients achieve 20/20 vision. Patients are often amazed at how clear their close-up vision is after LASIK.

If you are over age 40 and feel that you are just now experiencing farsightedness, you are most likely experiencing a completely different vision condition called presbyopia. Unlike a refractive error, presbyopia occurs to most people as they age and is caused when the eye lens begins to stiffen. People with presbyopia have trouble focusing on close-up objects, including menus and books, and require reading glasses to see more clearly.

Monovision LASIK is sometimes performed to help minimize the effects of presbyopia by correcting one eye for up-close vision and one eye for distance vision; however, traditional LASIK does not correct presbyopia.

To find out if you qualify for bladeless LASIK in Charleston, contact Charleston Cornea & Refractive Surgery at 843-856-5275 or charlestoncornea.com to schedule a free LASIK Consultation. Most patients report improved vision the day after their procedures; you might be able to enjoy Library Lovers’ Month with clear vision after LASIK!

Here are some other observations during February to complement Library Lovers’ Month:

• Saturday, Feb. 7: Take Your Child to the Library Day
• Saturday, Feb. 14: International Book Giving Day (share your love of reading on Valentine’s Day!)

LASIK and Astigmatism

Astigmatism is a common refractive error, which means that the eye does not focus light properly on the retina (the back of the eye). This condition causes light to focus on areas in front of and/or behind the retina, making vision blurry or distorted at all distances.

Astigmatism occurs when you have an irregularly-shaped cornea. LASIK vision correction can often correct the “football” shaped cornea of astigmatism into more of a “basketball” shape, thereby allowing light to properly focus on the retina and provide clear vision.

LASIK is not the best option for all patients with astigmatism. For example, if your corneas are too thin to support the procedure or if you have a medical condition that may interfere with healing, an alternative to LASIK (such as PRK) might be more appropriate.

Advances in LASIK technology have made this popular procedure a viable option for more patients than ever before. To find out if you might be a good candidate for LASIK, contact Charleston Cornea & Refractive Surgery in Charleston to schedule your free LASIK Consultation at 843-856-5275 or charlestoncornea.com. 

Do Starfish Have Eyes?

The next time you stumble across a starfish while swimming in the ocean, gaze into his arms to see if he notices you. That’s right…his arms!

Oddly enough, most starfish have primitive compound eyes on the tips of each of their arms. A recent study showed demonstrated that starfish use these eyes to process visual information, especially when there was a need to locate food sources. Two groups of starfish were studied: one group with eyes and one group without. The two groups were placed in a sandy area of the ocean and studied how they moved toward the coral reef, which was their food source. The group with eyes was able to navigate directly toward the reef, while the group without eyes wandered aimlessly.

Additional studies into starfish may help researchers learn more about eye evolution.

Researchers are also continually studying human eyes and devising new technologies to correct vision problems. For example, in the past if you were nearsighted, farsighted or had astigmatism, you were stuck wearing glasses or contact lenses for life. Today, people have options, such as LASIK laser vision correction, to potentially eliminate their need for corrective lenses.

That means swimming in the ocean (and checking out the starfish) with clear vision using just a regular snorkel/diving mask or goggles.

If seeing starfish and other sea creatures more clearly sounds attractive to you, contact Charleston Cornea & Refractive Surgery at 843-856-5275 or charlestoncornea.com today to schedule your free LASIK Consultation. Dr. O'Day isn't an expert on starfish, but he has extensive experience in helping qualified candidates improve their vision.