In a survey conducted by Harris Poll in January 2014, it was found that 91 percent of women are not aware that they are at greater risk than men of developing an eye disease that can lead to permanent vision loss. With such an astonishing number, it’s critical that practitioners take advantage of Women’s Eye Health and Safety Month in April to inform female patients of their potential risk.

Statistics have shown that women are 66 percent more likely to suffer blindness than men. Women account for 61 percent of cataract diagnoses as well as 65 percent of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) cases. Diseases such as glaucoma and vision impairment due to refractive error are also significantly higher in women. Most of these diseases develop in older adults.

With age and hormonal changes being key factors in the development of eye diseases, the fact that women have longer life expectancies and are more susceptible to hormonal change than men is a major cause of the increased risks. Declining estrogen levels in postmenopausal women and fluctuating hormones during pregnancy can also lead to changes in vision and cause issues such as dry eye. Women that develop gestational diabetes should have their vision …

When you’re looking to make your eye care practice stand out from others in your community, oftentimes you may immediately think of making sure your practice offers the newest technologies to ensure patients are receiving top-notch exams. Or, perhaps you think of executing very targeted marketing strategies to attract and retain patients. However, in a recent two-part series of The Optometric Minute, April Jasper, OD, FAAO, and Katie Gilbert-Spear, OD, MPH, shared six ways you can distinguish your practice from the rest that go beyond providing the best technology.

Vision – Each practice needs a vision that sets the tone for what the practice should look like, the atmosphere it should have and an idea of where the practice is headed. Atmosphere – From the moment a patient steps in your practice, a patient should feel welcomed and cared for. This atmosphere should let patients know that they can trust you with their vision care needs. Service – Patients should be “wowed” by your practice’s level of service. Oftentimes, patients respond more positively when you give them a thorough description of your services, offer prompt responses to all feedback and show your patients you care about giving them a …

Many patients still think of melanoma as a form of cancer that only affects the skin. However, melanoma can become present in the eye, as one practitioner and optomap® customer knows from personal experience.

Denise Kniefel, OD, has been an optomap® customer since 2004 and began imaging her own retina “as a matter of course.” In 2008, Dr. Kniefel stopped by our booth at a tradeshow to speak with a representative about the new technology we’d recently revealed, which provided better imaging than before. She had her retina image captured at our booth, and the imaging detected a nevus that Dr. Kniefel had not seen previously.

Dr. Kniefel visited her ophthalmologist when she returned home, who performed a fluorescein angiography and an OCT exam. Her practitioner confirmed the nevus and recommended routine monitoring, as a nevus is similar to a freckle on the skin and can become cancerous. Her doctor told her to be watchful of changes in her vision, since this could be a sign that the nevus was changing to cancerous melanoma.

Dr. Kniefel captured images of her retina every six months with optomap® and in 2013, she noticed the nevus appeared different …

With the leading cause of vision loss in American patients being attributed to diabetes, doctors of optometry are among the first line of defense against blindness caused by this disease. Collaborating with the American Optometric Association (AOA), Optos has sponsored a multi-year initiative focusing on clinical education and providing resources for diabetic patient care. One of these resources is the supplemental guide titled “Optometrists Form Front Line Battling Diabetes“.

This supplemental guide addresses the fact that as doctors of vision care, you are the primary caregivers to help prevent blindness due to diabetes, and ensuring visual and retinal health for your diabetic patients. The guide offers valuable information to help educate your patients on the possible repercussions diabetes can have on their eye health, and provide guidance to aid you in educating them on the importance of early detection, treatment and management of this disease.

The guide provides you not only with valuable advice in patient care, but also provides you with insight on how to educate your patients about preventative care and disease management to protect their eye health. Since the patient must be actively involved in their own care, there is even information on …

Despite an aging population, a study conducted of 50 developed countries has revealed blindness has plummeted by 50 percent and moderate to severe blindness has been reduced by 38 percent from 1990 to 2010 (USA Today). The rates are somewhat lower across the United States and Canada because they started out with significantly lower rates compared to international standards.

The major reason for the decline in blindness and serious vision impairment can be attributed to the availability of cataract surgery. At one time the leading cause of blindness, cataracts have been replaced by macular degeneration in wealthier countries. Generally found in older adults, macular degeneration causes central vision loss due to damage to the retina and is harder to treat.

Earlier diagnosis, advanced technology and access to treatment are also responsible for these incredible declines in blindness and severe vision loss. Compiled from 243 studies out of 15,000 worldwide that were suitable (Business Insider), the statistics speak for themselves:

— In the 50 countries studied, the prevalence of blindness decreased from 0.2 percent to 0.1 percent of the population. The USA and Canada remained steady at 0.1 percent, while the global rate of blindness is at 0.5 percent. — Moderate to severe visual impairment …

As we shared in January for Glaucoma Awareness Month, around 4 million people in the U.S. alone suffer from glaucoma, along with thousands of others around the world. It’s not only important that you discuss the signs and symptoms of this disease with your patients, but that you help those who have been officially diagnosed stay on track with maintaining their condition.

As EyeWorld reports, many cases of glaucoma “can be controlled medically,” but as many as one-third to one-half of patients don’t bother with getting their medications upon the initial diagnosis, says Dr. Louis B. Cantor of Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, citing Alan Robin, M.D. Dr. Cantor shares that educating patients is extremely important, but that’s often where the challenge lies.

To help patients better understand their condition and help them get (and stay) on track with managing glaucoma, Dr. Cantor’s practice uses 3D eye models that can be taken apart in order to explain how glaucoma affects the eyes and what parts of the eye don’t work when pressure begins to build up. He also explains how pressure can damage the eye – especially the back of the eye where the optic nerve is …

We’ve shared before that creating profiles on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest are great ways to market your eye care practice. They give you a place to interact with patients and offer the added benefit of being able to reach potential patients. Plus, you’re able to share your knowledge on eye care and common vision issues in a way that’s fun for patients.

For practitioners who may just be stepping into the world of social media with their practice, the American Optometric Association has some great tips for not only using these profiles to promote your practice, but also mastering the art of social media quickly. As you’re getting started, take the following into consideration:

— Engage with your followers. Don’t just post status updates and ignore questions and comments. Listen to your audience and provide them with an answer or response anytime you can. The more you engage with them, the more they’ll come to see you as an excellent source of information.

— Share what’s happening at your practice. Did you recently receive an award? Were you published in a medical journal? Is your practice involved with a local charity? Your social sites are …

We’ve discussed many times how diabetes is a leading cause of blindness throughout the world, and, unfortunately, many people with diabetic eye diseases are unaware of how serious their risk is. According to the American Optometric Association (AOA), a new study revealed less than half of those with diabetic macular edema (DME) are aware of the risks diabetes can pose to their vision.

During the study, researchers gathered information from 798 type 2 diabetes patients from 2005 to 2008 through the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. All patients were over the age of 40 and had undergone retinal imaging. Forty-eight of the respondents had been diagnosed with DME and they were asked through the survey “whether a physician had told them about the link between diabetes and vision problems.” Only 44.7 percent stated that they had spoken to a physician about their condition and the vision risks associated with it.

Furthermore, 46.7 percent of respondents had seen a health care provider within the past year regarding their diabetes. Just fewer than 60 percent had received an eye exam within the year prior to taking the survey. About 30 percent of those with DME reported that they had …

Surgeons at the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center performed the first bionic eye surgeries in January, a little less than a year after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the Argus II retinal implant device. The Kellogg Eye Center is one of 12 facilities in the U.S. offering bionic eye surgery.

The device was designed to replicate certain functions of the retina for patients suffering from retinitis pigmentosa. While Argus II will not completely restore a patient’s vision, researchers and surgeons expect that patients “will be able to see objects, or lights in front of them,” Kellogg Eye Center surgeon Dr. Thiran Jayasundera told WZZM13.

However, those results will not be immediate. Patients must first fully recover from the implant procedure, and then doctors will activate the patient’s bionic eye. Afterwards, patients will go through one to three months of training to help them adapt to their new bionic eye and new vision capabilities. Dr. Jayasundera said the training will help each patients’ brain “learn to sort through the many impulses that are stimulated when recipients turn their head in different directions.”

Linda S., the first patient to receive the surgery, is hopeful …

Earlier this year, we shared a report, which suggested UWF imaging’s potential to improve diagnostic efficiency for conditions such as DR and diabetic macular edema. In a separate study published in Diabetes Care, non-mydriatic UWF retinal imaging, in comparison to non-mydriatic fundus photography (NMFP), showed potential in improving “the efficiency of ocular telehealth programs evaluating DR and diabetic macular edema.”

According to Healio, a total of 1,633 patients with diabetes were tested for DR and diabetic macular edema with NMFP for this study, and 2,170 patients were tested for the same conditions using UWF retinal imaging. There were no significant differences in age, duration of diabetes, gender, ethnicity or insulin existed among the two groups. Non-mydriatic UWF imaging was found to show a 71% reduction in the ungradable rate and a 28% reduction in image evaluation time, with an average image evaluation time of 9.2 minutes as opposed to 12.8 minutes for NMFP.

In addition, non-mydriatic UWF imaging was found to be 4.6% better at identifying cases of DR, as well as 2.6% better at identifying the most severe, vision-threatening cases of DR.

As diabetes is a leading cause of blindness in individuals between the ages of 20 …