Hurricane Sandy Visits SkyVision

People roll their eyes when we say things like "we have a very visual job", but when big storms hit our part of Cleveland it's never more true. SkyVision Centers, along with all of the businesses in the Crocker Park area of Westlake, lost its power on Monday night. We didn't get it back until sometime very early in the morning today. As luck would have it our phones were still kaput until just after noon. All is well and everything is up and running now, even our phones!

As much as any specialty, eye doctors are literally stopped cold without electricity. Not just those who have computerized medical records, but ALL eye doctors. If you think about it that makes a lot of sense. All of the instruments that our doctors use are electric in some way, shape or form. Even the lowly flashlights need to be plugged in to get charged.

We are fortunate to have highly qualified emergency room physicians in the Greater Cleveland area, and most of the hospitals have generators if there is an emergency that must be attended to immediately. Dr. White likes to say that SkyVision is open and available for eye emergencies 363 days of the year, we just never know which day will turn out to be #364 or #365. For us this year one of them was November 30th!

We are back and running strong today. Happy Halloween! Let's hope none of the Hobgoblins gives you such a fright that you need to see an eye doc, but if you DO...

Advanced Lens Implants Last Forever!

More and more of our SkyVision patients are choosing Advanced Lifestyle intraocular lens implants (IOL's) for their cataract surgeries. Not only are they getting better and better vision, but following their surgeries they can see almost everything they need to see WITHOUT ANY GLASSES!! We have also noticed a trend toward people opting to have their surgies at a younger age so that they can enjoy their improved, glasses-free vision for a longer time.

This of course has prompted people to start to ask how long will their implants last? It turns out that the new, advanced IOL's that help people to see better without glasses last just as long as the Basic High-Tech implants we have been using for decades. Dr. White is fond of saying that "[your] lens implants will outlive you by several thousand years!"

If you have a cataract and need to have surgery you don't have to worry about your IOL "wearing out". They pretty much last forever! The two questions you need to ask yourself remain the same as they've always been. When do I want to see better? Do I want to be freer from the need to wear glasses after my cataract surgery?

If the answers are "now" and "yes" you can rest assurred that your IOL's will likely last forever!

Halloween Contact Lenses? BE CAREFUL!!

Every year we see someone in the SkyVision Centers office who bought decorative contact lenses as part of their Halloween costume. This is pretty cool, adding a cool "eye" to your costume, but the people we see after Halloween are folks who bought their contact lenses at the same place they bought their costume, NOT from an eye doctor of any kind. Some of these people have never worn contact lenses before, and no one taught them how to take care of their lenses.

Contact lenses are WONDERFUL, and we are big fans of contacts in general. There are some really important safety rules with contact lenses, though, and buying contacts from a costume store can be dangerous. Here is a video from the American Academy of Ophthalmology about these dangers.

Be smart. If you wear contact lenses take good care of your eyes. If you don't wear contacts and have never had a formal contact lens fitting, don't choose this weekend to all of a sudden buy a pair for Halloween. We want your Halloween to be filled with only treats!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN from all of us at SkyVision!

The Chronic Dry Eye Five

How do you know that you need to make a special visit to your Skyvision Centers eye doctor when you think you have dry eye, even if you are not due for an appointment? Here are 5 questions to ask yourself:

1) Are you using artificial tears multiple times a day?
2) Have you been using them on your own without an eye doctor's guidance for several months?
3) Have you tried 2 or more types?
4) Are dry eyes affecting your use of the computer? Reading? Driving? Wearing contacts?
5) Are you unsatisfied with the relief you're getting from the dry eye treament you've chosen?

Dry Eye Syndrome (DES) is incredibly common. In fact, people search the internet for information on DES rougly 5X as frequently as they search for information on LASIK! If you have not had a DES consultation at Skyvision Centers and you answered "Yes" to two or more of the above questions call us (or download our free Smarphone app and email) for a consultation.

You don't have to suffer from chronic DES!

BMO Harris Vice President Justine Fedak loves her glasses

October 2012


Justine Fedak shows off a few of her 30 pairs of glasses.

A Few of her Glasses - A Gallery

So, I wear glasses. All the time.

I started wearing them 20 years ago. I distinctly remember my eye doctor suggesting that I wear them to drive, and to “try and get used to them.” At first, they were uncomfortable and I felt a little queasy. My father jokingly called me “four eyes.” I briefly investigated switching to contacts.

But then, I began to embrace my bespectacled self. The glasses were my shield. My armor. My look. Now, my glasses define me wherever I go.

My name really isn’t something anyone remembers. I find myself having to repeat “Justine” after I’m called Julie, Joanne, Jennifer, Jasmine or Christine. But nobody ever forgets my glasses. I always hear the same thing, “oh, I remember meeting you” and “those” glasses.

Yes, those glasses.

Those glasses are actually 30 different pairs. Looking back, it’s hard to believe that I wore the same pair for 10 years. But I really did; I didn’t think about them as a possible accessory, because people didn’t accessorize with glasses in the ’90s. They were actually a functional tool to improve your vision. Imagine that.

Now that they are more popular, people’s comments have evolved: “Do you really need those glasses to see?” Or, “Are those lenses real?” as they move their faces closer to mine. These days, glasses aren’t really for seeing. They’re a hipster accessory; a proclamation of coolness.

But my love of glasses is about more than fashion. They actually help me meet people — you can’t imagine how many comments I get from strangers. It typically starts with a compliment like, “I really love your glasses.” I say thank you and smile, and the follow-up varies from asking about the brand and where I bought them and goes as far as, “Can I try them on?” (For the record, I’m happy to hand them to strangers, give my opinion about how they look and often take their picture with their phone so they can see for themselves.)

Another unexpected benefit of my glasses is they are a fountain of youth. With all the twenty-somethings wearing glasses because they’re trendy, my oversized glasses (which I always thought made me look like Candice Bergen in the late ’70s) are now a youthful statement.

I’m sometimes still asked why I don’t try contacts — typically by people who are a little older. They tell me I’d be more comfortable and look better. I defend my glasses with fervor. “I love my glasses,” I say. “They are me.”

My glasses create connections. They invite friendships. They’re more than an accessory — they change people’s perceptions of themselves. They offer wearers the chance to reinvent themselves. They build confidence. They protect me.

The glasses that made me “four eyes” 20 years ago are now my unmistakable personal brand. When they slide down my nose and I push them up, touching them reminds me they are there and what they mean to me. I feel good.

And now that I’m in my 40s, when I’m reading I’ve noticed I sometimes see better with them off. I recall laughing at my grandfather taking his glasses off to read. And I think of how many special moments my glasses provide me and how — in a world where we are all striving to be perfect — I’m grateful my eyes aren’t perfect. Except when I wear my glasses.

Justine Fedak donated her fee for writing this column to the Noah’s Arc Foundation

Skyvision Centers has an extensive collection of eyeglasses for all ages and personalities!

Advanced Care for Pink Eye: An Update

We recently wrote about a new diagnostic tool to help determine if Pink Eye, or Conjunctivitis, is caused by a particular virus. The AdenoPlus test for adenovirus is now part of our acute red eye protocol at SkyVision Centers and has been for 6 weeks. Here's what we have found:

1) Approximately 50% of infection-caused Pink Eye is caused by the adenovirus.
2) Treating viral conjunctivitis with both and anti-inflammatory medicine AND an antiviral decreases the time it takes for patients to feel better.
3) We have been surprised to find positive test results in eyes that we would otherwise not have diagnosed as viral Pink Eye. This has increased our ability to accurately and promptly treat our patients.

4) Positive tests have occurred as long as 3 weeks after the beginning of symptoms; we wonder if the AdenoPlus test will also bring a new understanding about the length of time someone can remain contagious.

5) We have been able to decrease the amount of antibiotics we have been prescribing for Pink Eye.

New Test For Pink Eye at Skyvision

In combination with our cutting edge Dry Eye diagnostic protocols using the TearLab tear osmolarity test, SkyVision now has the most advanced protocols available to diagnose and treat a patient who comes to the office with a Red Eye. We are committed to seeking out any and all new discoveries in order to remain on the cutting edge of this, and all eye diseases!

Makeup and Pink Eye

Can I wear makeup if I have Pink Eye? Do I have to throw out my old makeup? And HEY, just what IS pinkeye, anyway?

Pink Eye, or Conjunctivitis, is one of the most frequent caused of emergency visits at Skyvision Centers. Dr. White, Dr. Schlegel, and Dr. Kaye are all experts in treating all of the causes of conjunctivitis. True Pink Eye is an infection caused by either a bacteria or a virus. A majority of Pink Eye in young children is caused by bacteria, but as we get older most of it is actually from viruses. You catch viral Pink Eye like you catch a cold through coughing, sneezing, or coming in contact with tears. Bacterial Pink Eye is usually from contact with tears. Both are VERY contagious.

What to do about your makeup if you have Pink Eye? Well, there's actually not a whole lot of very good research here so our advice is good, solid, Cleveland medical common sense! Don't wear makeup until your eyes look and feel better, and YES, you should throw away your mascara and your eyeliner.

And don't forget, your cousin's or your neighbor's or your BFF's eyedrops for THEIR Pink Eye may not be right for YOU.

LASIK Volume and the Economy

In the United States there have been two disasters that had a major effect on the number of LASIK surgeries that were performed at the time. September 11, 2001 was the first, and the devastation of the housing market and resulting Great Recession that began in August of 2008. An interesting observation was made before and after both of these events: LASIK volume in the U.S. tracks almost exactly with the Consumer Confidence Index!

It's really an amazing statistic when you think of all the incredible advances that have occurred in Laser Vision Correction since the introduction of the first Excimer lasers in 1994. Treatment of Astigmatism. Pupil trackers to increase accuracy. The "Flying Spot" laser that allowed treatments in the peripheral as well as central cornea. Custom Laser to treat Higher Order Aberrations. Iris Recognition to correct for the natural rotation of the eye when we lie down. Not a single one of them has had an effect on the number of LASIK surgeries done in the U.S.!

LASIK is clearly one of the most successful, safest, most predictable elective procedures ever introduced in medical care. A study performed by the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ASCRS) found that more than 95% of patients who underwent LASIK  were satisfied, very satisfied, or extremely satisfied with their results. And most of the 5% who did not say they were satisfied DID say that they would do it again.

See what Nick Saban has to say! 
Nick Saban - football - and Lasik

So what are you waiting for?! If you live in Cleveland and you would like to have a chance to be free of glasses and contact lenses call Skyvision Centers today, visit our WEBSITE, or download our FREE APP on your Android or iPhone and make an appointment.

Dr. White talks about Lasik in his Dr. Whiteboard video here Intro to Lasik

See What's Next!

Fun In the Operating Room

What a good time we all had in the operating room this morning! My OR's tend to be pretty light in atmosphere and generally low-stress environments. It seems that this extends to our patients as well. At the beginning of one of the cataract surgeries our patient, a 75ish year old woman, wanted to share a joke with everyone in the room. I suggested that she wait for the end of the case--I'd already started--and she did!

Here's her joke:

Three older ladies were having tea, and two of them were commenting on how happy their friend was with her new beau.

"What is it about him? Is he rich?"
"Is he a good dancer?"
"What is it?!"

With a little smile their friend leaned in and said in a low private voice, "No...it's none of those things. I'm happy because he can drive at night!"

Busted all of us up! You have to love a patient who can poke fun at herself and her generation!

Dr. White

Toric Soft Contact Lenses

Once upon a time, if you had any astigmatism at all you couldn't wear soft contact lenses. That's why Dr. White wore gas permeable rigid contact lenses before he had LASIK surgery. The early versions of soft contact lenses for astigmatism, called "TORIC"  soft lenses, were definitely better than nothing, but they suffered from poor stability on the eye and poor comfort.

There have been many very cool advances in contact lens technology, but one of the coolest has to be the new toric soft contact lenses for astigmatism. One of Dr. Kaye's favorites is the Air Optix Aqua Toric. It has a range of powers up to 2.25 of astigmatism, a pretty high amount. Dr. Kaye is also impressed by how well it fits and how stable it remains on the eye.

As you know, the doctors at Skyvision Centers are the leading experts in Dry Eye in Cleveland. All contact lenses can make your Dry Eye worse, but the Air Optix is made from a material that is particularly helpful for patients with Dry Eye.

Do you have astigmatism? Tired of wearing your glasses because your contacts don't work as well? Call us at Skyvision Centers and chat with Dr. Kaye about giving the Air Optix Aqua Toric a try!

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and at SkyVision Centers we are doing our part! For every new pair of glasses that are purchased in our Optical Department this month we will donate $5.00 to the "Feel Your Boobies Foundation."

"My wife's cousin Leigh is a breast cancer survivor," said Dr. White. "She had bilateral cancers in her early 30's and has survived with the help of surgery and chemo. She has made it her life's goal to make young women aware of the importance of early and frequent self-examination."

The Feel Your Boobies Foundation is headquartered in Pennsylvania. Leigh and her staff travel all over the U.S. bringing their message to girls in high school and college. Their approach is very direct and edgy, just the kind of thing that will get the attention of young women. The White family has been strongly supporting them for years. In fact, Dan and Randy White celebrated the 1st Anniversary of their fitness center Comet CrossFit with a benfit for Feel Your Boobies!

So come on in and check out the fantastic selection of frames and lenses at the SkyVision Centers Optical, and tune in to the news on Channel 19 tonight in Cleveland to see if we made the cut for tonight's news program. You can learn more about Feel Your Boobies at www.feelyourboobies.com, or search for Feel Your Boobies on Facebook.

Help us support this worthy cause in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month!

Let The Sun Shine! It's About That Time Again . . . .

It's coming up on that time of year again, longer days, less sunlight and yes . . . . our sensitivity to that and how it can affect our moods. 

We have learned about the newly discovered photoreceptors, cells in the eye that react to light, called Photosensitive Retinal Ganglion Cells. These cells respond greatest to blue and violet colored light. They carry information about the light in our environment to the Hypothalmus, an important part of the brain for our day/night cycle and our moods. When we do not have enough light, especially in the blue and violet wavelengths, some of us suffer from what is known as Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD, a kind of depression.

One way to treat or avoid SAD is to make sure you get daily exposure to sunlight. Light exposure seems to cause a natural release of Serotonin, an importan neuro-regulator of mood. But if you live in Cleveland and it's Fall, Winter or even Spring, getting natural sunlight can be a real problem.

This is where light boxes can come into play. A light box like the Uplift Technologies one shown emits very bright light that has UV light filtered out. It has plenty of blue and violet light to activate your pRGC's. There is no substitute for real, honest-to-goodness sunlight! But if you suffer from SAD using the science behind the activation of pRGC's and the modulation of Serotonin might do the trick.

Daniel Kish and Echolocation

There is an amazing young man who has been blind since the age of 13 months who navigates using ECHOLOCATION, the same thing that bats use to "see". Daniel Kish lost his eyes to a type of eye cancer called Retinoblastoma and has been blind for essentially his entire life, and yet he can get around in the world as if he had both of his eyes!

Echolocation is the phenomenon by which the world can be mapped by the echoes of transmitted sound. Daniel creates echoes by clicking his tongue. He then analyzes the echo that returns to his ears. It turns out that human hearing is almost 10 times as sensitive as sight and can provide a very rich "view" of our surroundings.  Daniel calls his version of echolocation "FlashSonar".

Kish and a handfull of co-workers run a non-profit organization called "World Access for the Blind" which promotes and teaches echolocation as a means to make blind individuals more independent in everyday living. You can visit their website HERE.