A LASIK Experience

“LASIK was something I had been talking about for many years.  I never went through with it due to my busy work schedule.  My wife and I had been relocated to Northwest Indiana and now that I am in a management position my schedule has lightened up and is more predictable, I decided it was time to look into Lasik.  One of my new co-workers had lasik done with Dr. Buck and recommended him.  I have never been able to wear contacts.  I could never get them in.  I worried that I wouldn’t be a candidate because of that. I later found out that has no bearing on being a Lasik candidate.  I was so appreciative of the patient education that Dr. Buck goes through with his patients.  I had no fear after talking with him and his staff.  I had Lasik done about 3 months ago and can’t believe I waited so long.  I have to wear reading glasses still but that is no big deal at all.  I am not wearing distance glasses and I am thrilled!”

If you or someone you know is tired of the hassle of glasses or contact lenses for seeing at distance and would like to find out if LASIK might be a good vision correction option, please call Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center at 219-464-8223, or visit Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center, Google+ or facebook.com/nwindianaeyeandlaser. 

Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center offices are located at 502 Marquette Street, Valparaiso, Indiana 46383 and 1001 South Edgewood Drive, Knox, Indiana 46354.

Vision Loss is the Worst Disability

Most people would rather lose a limb than lose their eyesight, according to the results of a nationwide poll. Indeed, if given a choice, most people would prefer to lose their hearing, their memory, or their ability to speak rather than losing their vision, according to the survey results published in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology.

The survey polled 2,044 Americans from across all ethnic, racial, and economic demographics. Nearly 88% of respondents viewed eye health as critical to overall health, and 47% considered vision loss to be the worst possible health condition that could happen them, even worse than Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, or AIDS/HIV. Among the possible consequences of vision loss, respondents ranked quality of life as the greatest concern, followed by loss of independence.

While 81.5% of Americans reported having an eye examination, many were not well aware of the diseases and conditions that lead to vision loss. Nearly two-thirds of respondents reported awareness of cataracts (65.8%) or glaucoma (63.4%), but only half were aware of macular degeneration, and 37.3% were aware of diabetic retinopathy. As many as 25% of all respondents weren’t aware of any eye conditions that could cause loss of vision.

If you or someone you know does not have regular eye health and vision exams, please schedule one today. Please call Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center at 219-464-8223, or visit Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center, Google+ or facebook.com/nwindianaeyeandlaser. 

Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center offices are located at 502 Marquette Street, Valparaiso, Indiana 46383 and 1001 South Edgewood Drive, Knox, Indiana 46354.

Artificial Intelligence Can Help Prevent Diabetic Eye Problems

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is one of the leading causes of preventable blindness globally. Yet, many diabetic patients still do not schedule regular diabetic eye exams as requested by their physicians. Referral to an eye doctor for early diagnosis and treatment is the key to preventing vision loss in diabetics. Performing retinal screening examinations on all diabetic patients is an unmet need, and leads to many undiagnosed and untreated cases of DR. Recently researcher-clinicians reported their work to develop an artificial intelligence automated algorithm for retinal photographs that would help with referral from primary care physicians to ophthalmologists of eyes with DR for further evaluation and treatment. The study suggests that this method of screening would aid in reducing the rate of vision loss, enabling timely and accurate diagnoses.

Early Detection of Juvenile Diabetic Retina Problems

Diabetic retinopathy is best treated and managed with early detection and diagnosis. This can be especially important for children with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus. The earlier we can detect and diagnose the diabetic eye problems, the better we can prepare to help prevent vision loss. Most often diabetic retinopathy is diagnosed during a dilated exam of the retina during an eye exam. However, we also have a very sensitive non-invasive “kid friendly” imaging system in our office called Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) that can help us detect the very earliest types of changes from diabetes-even before they might be visible during a dilated retinal exam.

According to a clinical study reported in the journal Ophthalmic Surgery, Laser and Imaging Retina Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus causes and degenerative effect on certain nerve cells in the retina even before the breakdown of blood vessels occurs with diabetic retinopathy. From this research, it is thought that OCT may be more useful than just a dilated retinal exam in kids with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus.

If you or someone you know has a child or young adult with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus, please make sure they are having regular eye exams but also that we might perform an OCT as part of their care. If you have questions or wish to schedule an appointment please call Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center at 219-464-8223, or visit Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center, Google+ or facebook.com/nwindianaeyeandlaser. 

Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center offices are located at 502 Marquette Street, Valparaiso, Indiana 46383 and 1001 South Edgewood Drive, Knox, Indiana 46354.

Laser Treatment or Eye Drops for Glaucoma?

Can Laser Treatment Replace Eye Drops for Glaucoma?

Chronic Open Angle Glaucoma, which is the most common type of glaucoma, has no cure. Glaucoma is lifelong eye disease that will require you to be treated throughout your life in some manner. This may require using one or more eye drops on a daily or even more frequent basis, by having laser treatments or even surgery-or some combination of treatments, in order to maintain stability and prevent vision loss. in some manner. A recent study that might be of interest to those stable glaucoma patients who in fact use one or more eye drops each day was published in the journal Acta Ophthalmologica demonstrated that a form of glaucoma laser treatment called Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty was able to complete replace the need for eyedrops in 77% of stable glaucoma patients and still maintain excellent control of intraocular pressure! In most other patients, the laser treatment was able to reduce the number of different eye drops used or the number of times a single eye drop needed to be used to maintain stable eye pressure. This is very helpful for most glaucoma patients as it reduces medication side effects and helps those who might have a tough time instilling eye drops or remembering to use them at the prescribed time each day.

If you or someone you know has glaucoma and uses eye drops each day and wishes to explore the possibility of glaucoma laser treatment or anyone concerned about their risk of glaucoma and might need to schedule an eye exam we welcome you to call Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center at 219-464-8223, or visit Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center, Google+ or facebook.com/nwindianaeyeandlaser. 

Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center offices are located at 502 Marquette Street, Valparaiso, Indiana 46383 and 1001 South Edgewood Drive, Knox, Indiana 46354.

Is LASIK Safe after 65?

LASIK is safe, effective and convenient type of laser vision correction for those wanting freedom from the hassle of glasses and contacts. But sometimes patients think they might just be too old for LASIK. While the best way to correct both distance vision and the near vision focusing problem-presbyopia, is with lens implants for vision correction, a recent study clearly supports that even at age 65, LASIK is still safe and effective. Reporting in the journal International Ophthalmology  eye surgeons found that even though elder patients may present greater LASIK restrictions due to lens cataract and other eye age-related changes, patients 65 years of age and older that were good candidates LASIK achieved safe, predictable and effective vision and eye health results.

If you or someone you know is thinking about the freedom seeing clearly without glasses or contact lenses and is concerned about whether their age might be a problem, please schedule an appointment so we can help find out if you might be a candidate for LASIK or lens implants for vision correction. Please call Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center at 219-464-8223, or visit Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center, Google+ or facebook.com/nwindianaeyeandlaser. 

Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center offices are located at 502 Marquette Street, Valparaiso, Indiana 46383 and 1001 South Edgewood Drive, Knox, Indiana 46354.

Cataract Surgery Story with Dr. Buck

“Now that I am retired I have a lot of free time to do my hobbies.  Hunting and shooting is one of my favorite things to do.  So when I noticed things weren’t as clear as they used to be I made an appointment with Dr. Buck.  He said that I had a cataract in my right eye and the left eye was forming but not ready to come out.  The surgery was scheduled for the following month.  I couldn’t believe how quickly the procedure was and recovery was no big deal.  I was so happy to have clear vision again and surprised how much it helped my shooting.”

If you or someone you know is experiencing cataract symptoms such as cloudy foggy vision, glare or difficult night driving and would like to learn more about cataract surgery & lens implants please call Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center at 219-464-8223, or visit Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center, Google+ or facebook.com/nwindianaeyeandlaser. 

Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center offices are located at 502 Marquette Street, Valparaiso, Indiana 46383 and 1001 South Edgewood Drive, Knox, Indiana 46354.