Eyewear that protects the eyes

According to Prevent Blindness America, approximately 40,000 sports-related eye injuries each year in the United States are severe enough to require emergency room care- that’s one every 13 minutes! Experts agree that 90 percent of these injuries could be prevented by wearing protective eyewear. For children, eye injuries happen mainly during sports and other active play. Kids should wear eye protection, impact resistant lenses that offer adequate eye coverage are a must as are durable, properly padded frames and elasticized sports bands. Trivex and polycarbonate lenses are considerably more shatter-resistant than standard plastic lenses making them the best choice for safety and sports eyewear. Sufficient UV protection is also critical for any outdoor sport, particularly20one that involves snow or water. UV rays and excessive sunlight bouncing off snow and ice can lead to a painful sunburn of the eyes called photokeratitis. Long term exposure to UV rays has been associated with cataracts and macular degeneration. On January 11, 2006 the New Jersey State Senate and general assembly enacted a bill requiring children who wear corrective lenses to wear protective eyewear that meets the frames standards of the American Society for Testing and Materials and lens standards of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

FDA approves bimatoprost (Lumigan) for treatment of eyelash hypotrichosis

The glaucoma drug bimatoprost has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of eyelash hypotrichosis (la shes that are not long, thick or dark enough). The drug will be marketed under the name of Latisse and is applied to the base of the upper eyelashes and increases growth within eight to 10 weeks.

Diabetes Related Vision Problems

According to a study by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) in the Archives of Ophthalmology, the “prevalence of retinopathy, glaucoma, and other vision problems related to diabetes is projected to rise dramatically over the next four decades”. These projections are based on a steady increase in the total US population, an increase in the average age of the population, and disproportionate growth in the number of Hispanics and blacks, among whom the prevalence of diabetes is higher than among whites.

Presbyopia

The ability to see things up close is dependent on the natural lens of the eye (crystalline lens) changing its shape to accommodate every distance you’re looking at. Over the age of 40 the lens’s ability to change its shape diminishes and people find that “their arms have gotten to short”. A study published by Archives of Ophthalmology in Dec. of 2008 reported that “more than 1 billion people worldwide had age related presbyopia. The authors predicted that by 2020 563 million people worldwide will have disability associated with uncorrected presbyopia.

Sports Protection

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that 38,000 sports-related eye injuries are reported every year. Most sports demand eye protection. Impact-resistant lenses that offer adequate eye coverage are a must—as are durable, properly padded frames and elasticized sports bands. Sufficient UV protection is also critical for any outdoor sport, particularly one that involves snow or water.
On January 11, 2006, the New Jersey State Senate and general Assembly enacted a bill requiring “any child who wears corrective eyeglasses while participating in racquetball, squash, tennis, women’s lacrosse, basketball, women’s field hockey, badminton, paddleball, soccer, volleyball, baseball or softball, sponsored by a school, community or government agency... to wear protective eyewear that meets the frames standards of the American Society for Testing and Materials and lens standards of the American National Standards Institute.”

Eyewear That ProtectsYour Child's Eyes

Each year, thousands of eye injuries could be prevented if more people would wear safety glasses or protective eyewear.
Eye injuries happen all too frequently when adults and kids are enjoying sports or working around the home. Children are especially vulnerable to eye injuries because they often don't consider that their eyes, and possibly a lifetime of healthy vision, are at stake.
According to Prevent Blindness America, approximately 40,000 sports-related eye injuries each year in the United States are severe enough to require emergency room care — that's one every 13 minutes!
And experts agree that 90 percent of these injuries could easily be prev ented by wearing protective eyewear. For children, eye injuries happen mainly during sports and other active play. Kids should wear eye protection for the following sports and recreational activities:
baseball, softball, racquetball, tennis, badminton, soccer, ice hockey, paintball, street hockey, basketball, lacrosse, archery, fencing, boxing, & karate.
By Gretchyn Bailey

Multiple Sclerosis and Eye Care

MS is the most common disorder (demyelinating) of t he central nervous system. More than 350,000 people in the United States are estimated to have MS and the prevalence of this in increasing. Almost half of the patients present with ocular (eye) findings. Early diagnosis and treatment with disease-modifying therapies can delay the development of future clinical events and overall disease progression. The eye findings include optic neuritis (inflammation of the optic nerve), eye movement dysfunction, nerve palsies (beating eye movements), uveitis (inflammation of the blood vessel layer of the eye and blood vessel inflammation (retinal periphlebitis).

Would you like longer, thicker eye lashes?

On December 26, 2008 the U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved LATISSE as a treatment for hypotrichosis of the eyelashes (inadequate or not enough eyelashes) by enhancing the prominence of the eyelash as measured by increase in length, thickness and darkness of eyelashes. All hair follicles go through a growth cycle (length of time before the hair falls out of the follicle). There is the growth phase, transition phase and resting phase before the hair falls out. The eye lash goes through all of these phases in 45 days (hair on the head goes through its cycle in 6 years) but LATISSE extends the growth phase of the eye lash follicle by 30 days, resulting in longer, thicker lashes. In addition, the lashes are also stronger and less likely to break. LATISSE is a once-daily prescription treatment applied to the base of the upper eyelashes with an eyeliner brush or Q-tip. LATISSE (bimatoprost ophthalmic solution) is used in the treatment of open angle glaucoma and is a prostaglandin analog and it is designed to bind to prostaglandin receptors (PG) which are thought to be involved in the development and re-growth of the hair follicle.

Ultraviolet (UV) treatment:

Just as you use sunscreen to keep the sun's UV rays from harming your skin, UV treatment in eyeglass lenses block those same rays from damaging your eyes. Overexposure to=2 0ultraviolet light is thought to be a cause of cataracts, retinal damage, dry eyes and other eye problems. High index and Polycarbonate lenses have 100% UV protection built-in. But with regular plastic lenses, a lens treatment is required for these lenses to block all UV rays. This UV treatment does not change the appearance of the lenses and is quite inexpensive.