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EMERGENCIES

SUMMER PROTECTION

Continuous exposure to the sun’s rays can cause serious damage to your eyes. With Australia’s harsh climate, we are all aware of the risk of skin cancer but not everyone knows that overexposure to UV radiation can lead to impaired vision.

A good pair of sunglasses and a widebrimmed hat can make a difference. UV damage accumulates over a person’s lifetime so parents should make sure their children take the same precautions.

The Australian Standard for sunglasses is one of the best in the world. All sunglasses sold in Australia should meet this standard, so always check the label to make sure and remember that sunglasses do not have to be expensive to meet the standard.

Most sunglasses have a solid tint that is absorbed into the lens matrix. The tint colour is a personal preference, but grey and brown are the most popular, and less likely to cause confusion when you are trying to identify colours, whether it be when driving in the country keeping a lookout for kangaroos or avoiding mistaking a red traffic-light in the city.

Polarising lenses are designed to reduce the glare from reflecting surfaces, such as water or metal. This is handy for situations like fishing, water sports and at the beach.

Photochromic lenses change colour in sunlight—go outside and they get darker, step back inside and the dark tint fades. This is because exposure to UV light causes a chemical reaction in the lenses. The technology behind photochromic lenses has improved greatly over recent years. They are lightweight, tough and react quickly to sunlight.

If you wear spectacles, a pair of sunglasses can easily be made to your prescription. Your optometrist is the best qualified eye care professional to give you advice on any of these choices and help find the right sunglasses for you.

BEHAVIOURAL OPTOMETRISTS

Behavioural optometrists assess visual skills that are necessary for learning. These include tracking, fixation, focus change, visual discrimination, binocularity, depth perception, eye hand coordination, peripheral vision and visual memory which are otherwise missed in most school screenings.

Behavioural optometrist may help their patients with visual stress by prescribing “stress-relieving lenses”. They may also provide visual training activities to build the patient’s visual skills. The activities are often fun and challenging and the benefits are different for everyone. Younger patients may notice that they get better grades in school and homework is no longer such a chore to complete. Adults report that they work more efficiently in the office.

VISUAL STRESS IN THE OFFICE

After a day of reading, have you noticed?

• Your eyes becoming tired with aching, itching, watering and burning

• Print blurring, words coming into and out of focus

• Blur when you look up from close work

• Words doubling

These are some of the symptoms indicating stress. While our ancestors relied mostly on their far vision to help them survive, modern day living means that more people are exposed to sustained near work. The human visual system is not designed for this and in response the visual system may react in avoidance, adaptations such as short sightedness or stress.

Plus lenses in the form of single vision or bifocals are commonly used to reduce visual stress. While these lenses usually do not “correct” the underlying problems, they do put the visual system more at rest and allow the eyes to focus more quickly as well as allowing one to stay with near tasks longer.

A behavioural optometrist will do a full series of nearpoint vision tests to see if ‘stress relieving lenses’ are right for you.

CHILDREN'S VISION

Did you know that, along with allergies and asthma, eye disorders are the most common long-term health problems experienced by children?

Good vision is important for a child’s educational, physical and social development. With approximately 1 in 4 Australian children suffering from an undetected vision problem, it is important to be aware of the possible signs of a vision problem to give every child the best chance of reaching their full learning potential.

It is recommended that children have a full eye examination with an optometrist before starting school and regularly as they progress through primary and secondary school.

There are four major eye health conditions that can impact on our vision as we get older:

Glaucoma causes damage to the optic nerve cells, often due to pressure inside the eye, causing loss of peripheral vision. Glaucoma may not always be self detected and must be treated early to prevent progressive and irreversible damage. It can also be hereditary.

Cataracts cause clouding of the lens inside the eye, usually the result of long-term UV exposure and ageing, which results in gradual loss of vision. Cataracts are very common and can be easily removed and replaced with a plastic lens by surgery.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) distorts the central retina and causes distortion of vision. Your chance of developing AMD is much higher if it runs in your family. You may not realise you have AMD until your central vision becomes affected, and while it cannot be cured, there is some treatment available which must be started early.

Diabetic retinopathy is caused from leakage from the blood vessels at the back of your eye which can cause serious vision loss. Retinopathy from diabetes must be detected and treated early and may require laser treatment or eye injections.

While fashion is important when choosing the right frame to suit your personality, there are other practical matters to consider.

One of the most important is the fit of the frame. Make sure that the frame sits comfortably on the bridge of your nose. To prevent the arms of your spectacles from digging uncomfortably into the sides of your head, select a pair of frames that is wide enough for you. Our staff will be able to adjust the frame slightly but if major adjustments are required, then the frame probably is not right for you.

The frame must be appropriate for your prescription and for the type of lenses they are going to hold. A fine, delicate frame is not suitable for high prescriptions as it will have difficulty supporting thicker lenses and the thick edges of the lenses may show. Spring-loaded hinges allow the frame to flex a little when it is being put on and taken off and help maintain the fitting adjustment, but these hinges do add a little more weight to the frame.

The quality of the frame can determine the cost. A good quality frame will last for years so look for sturdy construction and a high quality finish.

Seek professional advice to make sure you get the right frame that suits you and fits well.

If you have a Seniors' Eye the ACT Government will pay $35 towards the cost of spectacles.

Please ask one of our staff how we can assist you in reducing your cost when providing you with new spectacles.

Emergency appointments are available every day for patients with urgent problems. If your eyes are suddenly red or sore, especially if only one eye is affected, or should you have any sudden reduction of vision, please contact us immediately.