TIP 1 - Personally meet with the LASIK surgeon BEFORE day of surgery

This is important to see if there is a comfort level with the patient and surgeon.  Is the surgeon rushed and seems like there are more important matters he/she needs to get to?  If you have follow up questions, how easy is it to reach surgeon – is surgeon email or cell phone made available for concerns or questions?  People generally know their gut feeling when they meet someone else.  If you get a bad gut feeling, listen to it and seek another doctor. 

Tip 2 - Research the surgeon’s experience

Run a Google search on the surgeon to find out if there are numerous complaints.  Look up the surgeon on your state medical board to see if there are any issues with the medical license.

Tip 3 -  Seek third-party assessments of surgeon and lasik center

Are there just a few happy patients on the website or is there a plethora of patients commenting?  Social media sites allow unbias, unfiltered patient assessments of lasik center.

Tip 4 -  Evaluate the lasik center in person

When you visit the lasik center, is it clean and tidy or does it look like the kitchen of a “greasy spoon” diner?   The latter might be fine for bacon and eggs, but not for eye surgery.  Are the staff caring, polite, and genuinely interested in helping you?  Everything in a medical practice trickles from the top down, so if the staff are rude and insensitive you can bet the doctor probably is like that too.

Tip 5 - Make Sure these Four Essential Tests Are Part of the Evaluation

1) dry eye check – if dry eyes are found on lasik testing and NOT addressed, it increases risk of dry eye problems after lasik

2) pupil size check – some studies have shown increase risk of halos and glare from large pupils, while other studies have failed to show an association.  Either way, pupil checking is a must.

3) corneal mapping (topography) – the shape of the cornea can eliminate a patient from being a lasik candidate and indicate appropriate alternative procedures like PRK or Visian ICL.  Lasik done on a misshapen cornea that was not evaluated with corneal mapping can lead to double vision.

4) corneal thickness (pachymetry) – lasik on corneas that are too thin can weaken the strength of the cornea causing it to bulge out and turn into a condition called keratoconus that may lead to triple or quadruple images in vision.

Learn more at: www.BoxerWachler.com

There are two forms of Closed-Angle Glaucoma. Acute which is brought on quickly and considered a medical emergency; and Chronic which can develop slowly with no symptoms.

Acute Closed-Angle Glaucoma is generally caused by a rapid build up of pressure in the eye. Creating a sudden blockage of the fluid that travels between the iris and the lens. Acute Closed Angle Glaucoma can strike at any age and gender.

Chronic Closed-Angle Glaucoma is a silent creeper. It shows no symptoms and is usually caught during a routine examination. General symptoms of Chronic Closed-Angle Glaucoma are not apparent until much damage has been done. It is important to get regular screenings for Glaucoma if you have risk factors or any form of Diabetes. Risk factors for glaucoma are listed below.

Glaucoma Risk Factors:

Predominant Risk Factors-

Aging

Positive Family history

Race [African Americans]

High Intraocular Pressure

Central Corneal Thickness

Suspicious Nerve Appearance

Other Possible Risk Factors-

High Myopia

Diabetes

Hyper Tension

Eye Injury

History of steroid use

Migraine Headaches

Sleep Related-Breathing Disorders

Below are some symptoms of Acute Closed-Angle Glaucoma:

*Note: if you are experiencing these symptoms go to an emergency room for treatment.

Nausea

Vomiting

Severe pain

Rainbow Halos [Around lights]

Reddening of the eye

Acute Closed-Angle Glaucoma is a medical emergency. Failure to treat this serious condition can lead to blindness within one to two days. It is important to call your eye doctor immediately if you are experiencing any form of changes in your vision. Go to a medical center if you are experiencing vomiting, and severer pain in association with these changes. Learn more on other vision treatments : http://www.boxerwachler.com

Cataracts is a hereditary progressive condition that here in the US is often treated before the patient loses most of their vision. Most patients will develop Cataracts sometime between the ages of 55-70. A Cataract is a cloudy area of the lens that blocks light from getting through to the retina.

It is progressive because as the lens goes untreated the cloud continues to grow creating many problems in vision. There are treatments in the US that allow the patients lens to be replaced to restore their vision. In the US insurance will cover 50-80% of the cost of the procedure. However in many third world countries they simply can not afford the common procedure.

Recently Noor Dubai- a non-profit charity incentive that treats low vision and curable forms of blindness treated over 30,000 patients of all ages in Sudan and Dubai.

Quote:

“Noor Dubai has succeeded in dealing with critical humanitarian concerns of people of all ages who are unable to get the right treatments. The Noor Dubai Surgical team worked two six hour shifts every day completing an average of 400 successful surgeries daily.”

- said Quadhi Saeed Al Murooshid- CEO of Noor Dubai and Director General of the Dubai Health Authority.

This awesome initiative have created Free Cataracts Camps for patients with little to no money the ability to acquire good and accurate health care freeing them of the terrible complications that had caused them great damage to their vision.

Stats:

26,000 treated with medication and glasses
3,200 identified for surgery

There are 400,000 new cases diagnosed in the US every year. Cataracts are a growing concern and early detection and treatment can improve many lives by restoring vision.

Learn about Advanced Cataract Surgery:
www.boxerwachler.com/lasikspecialist/lasikprocedures/restor.html

Below are some common symptoms of Cataracts:

Fading colors
Cloudy or blurry vision
Difficulty driving into the sun
Poor night vision
Double vision- seeing more than one image in the eye
Frequent changes in the prescription

The basis for Natural Lens Replacement dates back over 100 years with the condition called cataracts. A cataract is when the biological lens becomes cloudy, blurs vision, and leads to difficulty driving at night, seeing glare off of lights and making it hard to read. As a result of cataracts, people altered their lifestyle and had to wait until the cataracts became quite advanced before having them fixed.

When the cataracts became “bad enough”, cataract surgery was performed to restore eyesight. During the cataract procedure, the cloudy biological lens was removed from the eye and a lens implant was put in its place. Very basic lens implants were used to correct distance vision when the cataracts were removed. While back then this was a major advance. These days this procedure is now considered a bit archaic because it corrects for only distance vision - patients still needed to wear reading glasses or bifocals afterwards nearly full time.

The lens implant technology is now very advanced - these sophisticated “premium” lens implants can correct both distance and reading vision. These lens implants are precision-engineered to exact specifications. This has revolutionized the use of lens implants. Natural Lens Replacement is the use of these premium lens implants to correct distance and reading vision which can provide tremendous freedom from the “crutches” of glasses. Natural Lens Replacement has been a boon for patients with cataracts since eye surgeons now routinely use them to correct cataracts and also fix reading vision. Since the Natural Lens Replacement technology is advanced, people with early cataracts are being proactive to have their cataracts fixed along with their distance and reading vision. Your parents’ generation typically had to wait until their cataracts got so bad that they had trouble driving and doing other activities before the cataracts could be repaired. A version of Len Augmentation can be used to cure patients with cataracts, even early cataracts.  No more are the days of waiting until the cataracts get so bad that it makes driving and other activities difficult.  Natural Lens Replacement fixes the early cataracts so they will never get worse and you will never have to worry about that happening to you. This will guarantee those cataracts never occur again.  Imagine how powerful that is never to have to worry about decreased vision again.

Request a free report:  http://www.boxerwachler.com/lasikspecialist/lasikprocedures/restor.html

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Genetics

The frequency of keratoconus in first degree relatives having the disease is much higher than the general population. Keratoconus can also be associated with other systemic syndromes such as Down’s syndrome.

The good news is that keratoconus is often not passed to children. If you have or may have children in the future, it’s only a 6% likelihood that any of your children will inherit keratoconus.

It makes sense to have your children have a baseline corneal topography between ages of 8-10 years old and have a topography every year. The subsequent topography maps can be compared to the first one to catch keratoconus early if it will be occurring. Early keratoconus can easily be “nipped in the bud” with a C3-R® treatment before it gets worse.

Quote:

“It seems that both environment and genetics play a role in Keratoconus”

-Says Dr. Brian S. Boxer Wachler, MD.

Free Radicals

All corneas, like any tissues in the body, create harmful byproducts (free radicals) of cell metabolism (metabolism is a fancy word for the activities of the cell required for it to live and do it’s thing). These byproducts are similar to a car’s exhaust that results from the car being driven. Normal corneas, like any other body tissue, have a defense system in place to neutralize the free radicals so they don’t damage the collagen.

The collagen is the equivalent of steel beams that support a building. Damage to those beams causes the building to tilt, just like damage to the collagen causes the cornea to bulge. Think of those free radicals as attacking your collagen fibers in the cornea, trying to thin it and weaken it.

The problem with keratoconus is that anti-free radical system in the cornea (called anti-oxidants) are not properly working, so the free radicals are allowed to overwhelm and wreak havoc on the collagen fibers. They bombard the cornea like mortar fire blasting into a brick wall. The free radicals damage the cornea, thin it, and ultimately allow it to bulge and steepen out. This is how your vision got worse from keratoconus.

Watch a FREE educational webinar about treatments for keratoconus: www.FixesYourKC.com

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If you are like the majority of the population you have problems dealing with conditions surrounding your eyes. The thought of eye surgery or cornea implants may not initially sit real well with you. The truth is the treatments and eye surgeries that are used today are much more advanced than they were even 10 years ago. Finding more and more efficient and less invasive procedures to help those with the unfortunate luck of contracting these uncomfortable and vision-deteriorating conditions.

There are many symptoms to let you know you are experiencing problems with your cornea. If you are experiencing issues with your cornea here are some common symptoms to let you know if it should be checked by your eye doctor:

• Vision Distortion
• Loss of Vision
• Pain
• Tearing
• Redness in your eyes
• Sensitivity to light
• Corneal Scarring

If the eyes are not taken care of we can face many progressive conditions that can lead to complete loss of vision. Understanding that not all eye conditions require eye surgery or cornea implants is the most important thing. There are some things that only require antibiotics or ointment as a treatment. So it is important not to come to any conclusions until the condition is explained to you by your eye doctor.

Keratitis-

Keratitis occurs after an eye injury causing inflammation or an ulceration of the cornea when the microorganisms enter the cornea.

There are a few common symptoms of Keratitis:

• Pain
• Vision Problems
• Discharge

Though Keratitis sounds serious and if untreated can get bad- the usual treatment for this condition is antibiotic eye drops.

There are some more sever eye conditions like Cornea Dystrophies: a couple are:

Keratoconus-

This condition is caused by the thinning of the cornea and causes the cornea to change shape. Keratoconus leads to significant vision distortions in patients and can greatly affect their ability to live life to its fullest. It can start at adolescence. Keratoconus can cause:

• Vision Distortions
• Scarring of the Cornea
• Swelling
• Vision Loss
• Depression

Sometimes, Keratoconus is associated with Down’s Syndrome, Addison’s Disease, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and some eye diseases like: Retintis Pigmentosa, and Vernal Keratoconjuctivitis. The treatments of this condition includes: Intacs, C3-R, CK, and Visian ICL. The disease is progressive and for a while can be treated with glasses or soft contacts but will lead to special contacts called “Rigid gas permeable contact lenses” unless early prevention occurs.

Fuchs Dystrophy-

This is a gradual deterioration of the endothelial cells which can break down for no reason. Some treatments include soft contacts, ointments, and cornea transplants.

Though we are not always comfortable with going to the eye doctor; going early enough can prevent serious damage to your eyes. Remembering that eye surgery is improving and our technology is growing more each year. The surgeries of today are much less invasive and without them a large part of our population would suffer greatly. The truth about eye surgery? We need it!

If you suffer from keratoconus or simply want to find a way to improve your vision without having to undergo laser surgery, you might be interested in using Intacs corneal implants.  There are many benefits associated with Intacs, whether you have Keratoconus or not, which has resulted in a growing number of people deciding to use these implants rather than undergo laser eye surgery.

The Benefits of Using Intacs

If you suffer vision problems, using Intacs is a great way to improve your vision.  In addition to the improved vision you will enjoy, Intacs also provide benefits such as:

1. They are removable and no permanent changes are made to your eyes
2. The natural shape of your cornea is not changed
3. You can use other methods for vision correction in the future if you desire
4. Unlike standard contacts, they are maintenance free

When it comes to laser eye surgery, the shape of your cornea actually has to be changed. This means that you may experience greater vision problems in the future if it turns out that you suffer from keratoconus or any other eye disease that affects the size or shape of your cornea.  In addition, laser surgery is permanent and cannot be undone.  Intacs, on the other hand, can be removed if you desire and changed as your vision needs change.

Safely Improving Your Vision

Intacs implants have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.  In addition, they have been approved for pilots to use and have been repeatedly proven effective over the course of 11 years worth of clinical research.  Although Intacs are not effective for all people with poor vision, approximately 70% of the population can effectively improve its vision with Intacs.  In fact, they are a viable solution for people suffering from the degenerative eye disease of keratoconus.

Implanting Intacs

The process of implanting Intacs is actually easier than you might think.  Since the implants are extremely thin, the eye doctor is able to insert them beneath the outer edge of the surface of your eye, an area that is referred to as the cornea.  The process is so simple that it is an outpatient procedure.

Unlike standard removable contacts, you don’t feel Intacs after they have been inserted in your eye.  Once they are inserted, they gently reshape our cornea’s curvature so it becomes properly shaped without actually removing any corneal tissue.  By reshaping the cornea, light rays are able to properly pass through your cornea so they can be properly focused upon.  These results in sharper and clearer vision.

Enjoying Great Results

The results of Intac corneal implants are quite impressive.  More than 97% of people that get the implants are able to pass the vision tests necessary to get their driver’s licenses without needing to wear glasses.  Amazing, more than 50% of patients are also able to achieve vision that is better than 20/20 after having the surgery.

Since Intacs do not permanently change your eye and can be changed as your needs change, it is a great option for those that are nearsighted as well as for those suffering from the degenerative eye disease keratoconus.

Although receiving Intacs corneal implants is a simple, outpatient process, it is still important to know how to properly prepare for the procedure and what to expect afterward.  With this overview, you should find that there are no surprises when you get this beneficial procedure completed.

Preparing for the Procedure

Before you can receive Intacs corneal implants, you will first need to undergo an extensive eye examination.  During this examination, the eye doctor will be determining whether or not your eyes are healthy and if you are a suitable candidate for the procedure.  In order to make this determination, the eye doctor will perform ophthalmic tests and will take a general medical history.  In all, this process can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 1 hour to complete.

Undergoing the Procedure

Once you and your eye doctor have determined that Intacs implants are right for you, you will set an appointment for the procedure and your eye doctor will explain the procedure to you.

In short, the eye doctor will add anesthetic drops to your eyes in order to numb them. He or she may then utilize special equipment in order to keep your eye open throughout the procedure or he or she may simply have an assistant hold your eye.  Either way, it is important that you do not blink and that the eye remains open throughout the entire procedure.

After your eye has been numbed, the eye doctor will make a small incision in the surface of your cornea. With the incision made, he or she can then prepare the eye for the Intacs implants.

The eye doctor will also take certain steps in order to stabilize your eye and to make sure it is properly aligned.  With the help of a special centering guide that is placed on the eye surface for one or two minutes, the eye doctor can be certain the proper location has been determined.  Then, he or she makes to micro-sized tunnels in the cornea and places the implants in the tunnels. Since the cornea actually has several different layers to it, the eye doctor has to separate the layers in order to find the right spot for the implant.

With the Intacs in place, the eye doctor closes the small openings that were made.  Immediately after the procedure is completed, you will probably notice the difference in your vision.

After the Procedure

Although the implanting Intacs is simple, it is best to rest for awhile after having the surgery completed.  It is also best to have someone drive you home afterwards.  In some cases, it will take a few days before you will notice a difference in your vision.  It also won’t take long for your eyes to heal and most people don’t feel any pain at all throughout the entire process.  In addition, patients do not feel the ring segments from the Intacs because they are actually placed beneath the nerve endings of the cornea.

While the exact results from Intacs will differ from one patient to the next, many experience better than “perfect” vision after the procedure is completed.

Are you considering getting Visian ICL in order to correct your vision?  If so, you are likely to be very pleased with the results.  At the same time, you should understand the benefits of the procedure and know for certain whether or not you are a suitable candidate before you start looking at having Visian ICL performed to improve your vision.

Why the Visian ICL Procedure is a Good Choice for Vision Correction

There are many advantages to using the Visian ICL procedure to correct your vision.  Namely, the procedure helps most people gain freedom from their glasses by improving visual acuity and helping to make the vision sharper.  In addition to improved vision, the Visian ICL procedure also offers benefits such as:

• Only requiring a small incision, which means no sutures are required and healing time is fast
• The lens is inserted in the posterior chamber of the eye, which makes it invisible
• It is made from Collamer, which is biocompatible with the eye

To date, the Visian ICL implants have been placed in over 60,000 eyes around the world. It also has a proven track record of success, having been used to help improve the vision of others for the past 15 years.

What Makes for a Good ICL Candidate?

In order to be considered a good candidate for Visian ICL, you should:

• Be between the ages of 21 and 45.
• Not be pregnant
• Not have allergies to the medication that is used during the procedure
• Not have health problems that may cause complication
• Have enough eye tissue density and a proper anterior chamber depth, which can be determined with an eye examination
• Not have experienced changes to your eyeglass prescription of more than 0.5 over the past year

Most people that meet these criteria will be eligible for the Visian ICL procedure.  Whether you are farsighted or nearsighted and whether or not you have astigmatism does not affect your eligibility for Visian ICL.  Even if you have severe myopia of up to a -20D prescription, you can still be eligible so long as you have an only minor case of astigmatism.  It should be noted, however, that the Visian Toric ICL is currently under review with the FDA and is capable of correcting myopia that is accompanied by astigmatism.

The Visian ICL procedure is also a good alternative for people that are no candidates for LASIK surgery because their cornea is too thin or because they suffer from dry eyes.  It should not be looked at as only an alternative for those that are not eligible for LASIK, however, as Visian ICL is a much safer choice that does not create a permanent change to the eye.  For that reason, even individuals that may qualify for the LASIK procedure may wish to use the Visian ICL procedure instead.

The Visian ICL procedure can help literally thousands of people enjoy better vision.  With its fast recovery time, excellent results, and lack of permanent change to the eye, it is clearly a great choice for anyone looking to finally say goodbye to their glasses.