​Cosmetic contact lenses might seem like the perfect way to enhance your Halloween costume this year, but the American Academy of Ophthalmology is warning consumers that the nonprescription lenses could do serious damage to your eyes. Although selling such lenses without a prescription is actually illegal, cosmetic lenses can still be found in stores and online. They are dangerous because they could cause corneal abrasions (scratches on the cornea, which covers the iris and pupil) and ulcers on the eye, which can then lead to infection (keratitis). If this happens, the AAO warns that corneal transplants and other eye surgeries might become necessary to prevent blindness."What happens to people's eyes after just one evening of wearing non-prescription costume contact lenses is tragic," Thomas Steinemann, M.D., an AAO spokesperson and professor of ophthalmology at MetroHealth Medical Center and Case Western Reserve University, said in a statement. "It all could have been avoided if these patients just took a little extra time to obtain a prescription and only wore FDA-approved lenses. I understand how tempting it is to dress up your eyes on Halloween without a prescription and using over-the-counter lenses, but people should not let one night of fun ruin their vision for a lifetime." Contact lenses should only be worn if they are FDA-approved and prescribed by an optometrist or ophthalmologist. Huffington Post, Oct. 21, 2013

As part of our continuous effort to stay updated and offer the best procedures for our patients, Dr Garcia and Dr Adams  now offer several types of MIGS (minimally invasive glaucoma surgery) that can be combined with cataract surgery or performed as a stand alone procedure.
These procedures have the advantage of a better safety profile and a shorter recovery period as compared to standard glaucoma surgery,  while being effective in lowering intraocular pressure and helping control the progression of glaucoma. Oftentimes they decrease or eliminate the need for glaucoma drops long term.

Ask our doctors if you are a candidate for these exciting procedures.

Also a new class of glaucoma medications (Rho kinase inhibitor)  is now available with less side effects, daily usage and great effectivity.

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We are preparing to upgrade our computer system and as part of those preparations, some of our patients have received multiple emails. These emails contain a link to My Secure Health Data where patients can view a summary of their office visits. We apologize for any confusion this may have caused and we appreciate your patience as we move ahead with our system upgrade.

Get a more refreshed look with BOTOX this spring!

BOTOX can be used to soften expression lines around your eyes and relax your forehead. The most commonly treated areas are the frown lines between your eyebrows, and lateral lines at the side of your eyes (crow's feet). In experienced hands BOTOX can also be used to achieve a subtle eyebrow lift. The dosages needed to achieve natural  good cosmetic results around your eyelids are very safe. There is no downtime and the procedure takes a few minutes. BOTOX cosmetic is FDA approved for use in these areas and the effect lasts up to 4-6 months.  BOTOX has been used safely by ophthalmologists for over 20 years to treat medical conditions like strabismus and certain spasms of the eyelids.

Call for a personal cosmetic consultation, ask us how BOTOX can help you.

Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness among adults aged 20 to 74 years. Have you had your annual dilated eye exam yet? If not, call the office to shedule your appointment today!

Laser Cataract Surgery with LenSx technology is offered by our surgeons at the Surgery Center of Chesapeake. A bladeless, computer-controlled laser allows the surgeon to plan and perform your surgery to exacting, individualized specifications not attainable with other surgical methods.

If you provided Medical & Surgical Eye Specialists with your email address, we will send your exam summary electronically.  It has come to our attention that some patients have been having problems viewing their exam summary.  If you did not receive an expected email, please check your spam folder or spam filter. 

Patients using Mac computers, iPhones, or iPads to view the documents will have trouble opening the documents using the Safari browser. Try opening the document using Firefox on a Mac computer.  Otherwise, open it using Internet Explorer on a PC.  

For those with a Yahoo email address, please give our office an alternate email address.  If you prefer, we can print out the summary and mail it to you.  

Please check out our online guide for Exam Summaries or you can contact the office with any questions or concerns.

An article published online in JAMA Internal Medicine on January 21, 2012, was reported by the Sydney Morning Herald as follows:

 Macular degeneration linked to aspirin use

It's used widely to prevent heart attack and stroke but new Australian research has raised concerns that aspirin could be contributing to eye disease.

Regular aspirin use was linked to a more than two-fold increase in the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness in the elderly, by researchers from the Westmead Millennium Institute for Medical Research in Sydney.