香港眼科教育, ophthalmology, myopia Hong Kong

2012年1月6日星期五

What Causes Astigmatism?

Astigmatism is a natural and commonly occuring cause of blurred vision. The exact cause in not known.

hat Are the Symptoms of Astigmatism?

People with undetected astigmatism often have blurred vision which can be associated with fatigue, eyestrain, and blurred vision. While these symptoms may not necessarily be the result of astigmatism, you should schedule an eye exam if you are experiencing one or more symptoms.

How Is Astigmatism Diagnosed?

Your optometrist or ophthalmologist can diagnose astigmatism with a thorough eye exam. Astigmatism may occur with other refractive errors such as myopia (nearsightedness) and hyperopia (farsightedness). Unfortunately, astigmatism often goes undetected in school-age children.

Because astigmatism may increase slowly, you should visit your optometrist or ophthalmologist whenever you notice significant changes in your vision. Optometrists are trained specifically to examine the general health of the eyes and prescribe eyeglasses and contact lenses. Ophthalmologists provide these services as well as treatment of disease through medication and surgery.

Reference information: http://www.webmd.com/eye-health/ www.eye.123.com.hk

It is not intended as medical advice to any specific person. If you have any need for personal advice or have any questions regarding your health, please consult your Ophthalmologist for diagnosis and treatment.

2012年1月3日星期二

Astigmatism and Your Eyes

Reference information: http://www.webmd.com/eye-health/ www.eye.123.com.hk

What Is Astigmatism?

A simple astigmatism is a common eye condition that's easily corrected by eyeglasses, contact lenses, or surgery.

Astigmatism occurs in an eye which is not completely round. This is one type of refractive error.

Astigmatism occurs in nearly everybody to some degree. For vision problems due to astigmatism, glasses, contact lenses, and even vision correction procedures are all possible treatment options.

A person's eye is naturally shaped like a sphere. Under normal circumstances, when light enters the eye, it refracts evenly, creating a clear view of the object. However, the eye of a person with astigmatism is shaped more like a football or the back of a spoon.

For this person, when light enters the eye it is refracted more in one direction than the other, allowing only part of the object to be in focus at one time. Objects at any distance can appear blurry and wavy.

2011年12月27日星期二

How Is Amblyopia Treated?

As the child keeps using only the eye with amblyopia, his or her vision will continue to improve. After the doctor determines that vision is back to normal, your child will not have to wear the patch. Some children may again lose some vision and need to undergo another round of patching. In cases of mild amblyopia, the doctor might recommend using an eye drop called atropine in the "good" eye instead of a patch. Atropine dilates the pupil and blurs the vision in the "good eye," forcing the "bad" eye to do most of the work while the child is playing with toys, eating, drawing, or reading.

Most children with amblyopia will also need glasses to help focus. If there is something blocking light from getting into the eye, the doctor might recommend surgery to remove the blockage. If strabismus is preventing the eyes from moving together correctly, your doctor might recommend surgery on the muscles of the eye. Your doctor will discuss with you what treatment is most appropriate for your child.

What Is the Outlook for Children With Amblyopia?

If existing underlying problems are treated and the amblyopia is detected and treated early, most children will gain vision. Because amblyopia becomes much more difficult to treat after about 7-9 years of age, early childhood exams are very important. It is important that you follow your doctor's advice about treatment. This can be very difficult, because many children do not want to wear an eye patch every day. With the use of atropine as an alternative method of treatment, success is now possible in a larger proportion of children with amblyopia.

Reference information: www.webmd.com/eye-health/ www.eye.123.com.hk

2011年12月25日星期日

Amblyopia Diagnosed and Treated

Reference information: www.webmd.com/eye-health/ www.eye.123.com.hk

How Is amblyopia Diagnosed?

All children should be screened before they are school age. Your child's doctor or the vision program at school will check three aspects of your child's eye health:

That your child's eyes let light all the way through.
That both eyes see equally well.
That the eyes are moving normally.

If there's a problem in any of those three areas, the doctor or school nurse may recommend a visit to an eye specialist. If you feel that something could be wrong with your child's vision, call your doctor even if he or she has been screened at school.

Family history of amblyopia is a risk factor for the disorder. Parents cannot tell just by looking at their child if they have amblyopia. Early diagnosis and treatment are the keys to the best visual outcome.

How Is amblyopia Treated?

The most common treatment for amblyopia is to force the brain to start using the "bad" eye. This is done by first correcting any underlying problems in that eye and then by putting a patch over the "good" eye. At first, the child will have a hard time seeing with just the weaker eye. However, it is very important that your child wear the patch diligently because this will eventually improve vision. It can take weeks or months for an eye patch to improve vision. It's important to follow your doctor's instructions carefully and that your child is monitored closely during treatment.

2011年12月23日星期五

Amblyopia and Your Child's Eyes

Amblyopia -- or lazy eye -- is a condition that occurs in children when some underlying cause prevents vision from developing properly in one eye. If Amblyopia is left untreated, a child's vision will never fully develop correctly in that eye. Vision impairment becomes permanent because as the child’s brain matures, it will "ignore" the image coming from the poorly seeing eye. Because Amblyopia can result in permanent vision loss in one eye, it is important to have a child with Amblyopia regularly tested by an eye doctor.

What Causes Amblyopia?

Amblyopia usually starts when one eye has much better focus than the other eye. For example, one eye might be very nearsighted or have a lot of astigmatism, while the other does not. When the child's brain is confronted with both a blurry image and a clear image, it will begin to ignore the blurry image. If this goes on for months or years, the vision in the eye that sees the blurry image will deteriorate.

Another cause of Amblyopia is strabismus. Strabismus is an ocular misalignment, meaning that one eye turns inward or outward. This prevents the eyes from focusing together on an image and can cause double vision. In order to combat this, the child's brain generally chooses to ignore the image from the deviated eye, causing the vision in that eye to deteriorate. Because one of the eyes is misaligned, some people refer to this as a "lazy eye."

Other children cannot see well in one eye because something blocks light from getting through. This could be due, among other causes, to a cataract or a small amount of blood or other material in the back of the eye.

Reference information: www.webmd.com/eye-health/ www.eye.123.com.hk