Early Detection and Treatment Leads to Healthy Eyesight

S easonal allergies affect more than 35 million Americans each year  and can have a tremendously negative impact on an individual’s quality of life. Tree pollens in April and May, grass pollens in June and July and mold spores and weed pollens in July and August add up to a five-month barrage of eye-irritating allergens. Triggered by the same allergens that cause intermittent allergic rhinitis, seasonal allergic conjunctivitis is the most commonly occurring ocular allergy. A part of a wide array of allergic conditions that involve inflammation of the conjunctiva, seasonal allergic conjunctivitis is characterized by a combination of ocular itching, inflammation, watering and redness. If seasonal conjunctivitis is bothering you, here are some tips that can help: Study your geography . You can monitor tree, grass, weed and mold spore counts for your particular geographic area. That way you can determine when it might be best to stay indoors, thus minimizing exposure to irritating alle

April is Sports Eye Safety Month This April we are acknowledging sports eye safety. We are informing and urging athletes to wear protective eye wear when playing a sport. Sports provide good exercise for maintaining proper weight, improve strength and coordination, and helps build lifelong healthy habits and attitude. But, there are health risks in playing sports including eye injuries; the vast majority of which are preventable. About 42,000 sports eye injuries occur every year. The majority of the victims are children. Injuries include corneal abrasions, eyelid bruises, and internal eye injuries, such as retinal detachments and internal bleeding. many of these injuries lead to vision loss and permanent blindness. For young athletes, baseball and basketball account for the largest number of injuries. Little league pitchers may throw the ball up to 70 mph, which is fast enough to break bones and do serious damage to the eye. In basketball, you cannot prevent contact with flying elbow