Hines Sight

07/01/2022

Be careful out there!

Let's have a fun and Safe 4th of July!

https://www.vsp.com/eyewear-wellness/eye-health/fireworks-safety

The 4th of July has a spike in the number of injuries caused by fireworks. And last year 19% of those injuries were to the eyes. Yikes! Protect you and your loved ones this year with these fireworks eye safety tips.

06/15/2022

June is Cataract Awareness Month!

We want to make you aware of this common and natural part of aging. Did you know, cataracts are the leading cause of blindness in the world? It’s true! In fact, in the U.S., nearly 70% of people over the age of 75 have cataracts or have undergone cataract surgery1. You might be wondering “what is a cataract?” A cataract is a clouding of the lens inside the eye that can affect one or both eyes resulting in reduced clarity. To keep your vision healthy and clear, it is important to get an annual comprehensive eye exam, especially if you are over the age of 55!

Risk Factors

Certain lifestyles and genetics can play a factor in your risk of cataract development.
• Family history of cataracts
• Excessive exposure to sunlight
• Smoking
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Obesity

Thankfully, you can combat some of the risk factors by wearing UV-blocking sunglasses to avoid excess sunlight exposure. Also, eating a balanced diet with foods high in Vitamin C while also partaking in a healthy and balanced lifestyle!

Diagnosis

To determine whether you have a cataract, your doctor will review your medical history and symptoms, and perform an eye examination. Your doctor will conduct several tests, including:

• Visual acuity test: A visual acuity test uses an eye chart to measure how well you can read a series of letters. Using a chart or a viewing device with progressively smaller letters, your eye doctor determines if you have 20/20 vision or if your vision shows signs of impairment.
• Slit-lamp examination: A slit lamp biomicroscope allows your eye doctor to see the structures at the front of your eye under magnification. The microscope is called a slit lamp because it uses an intense line of light, a slit, to illuminate your cornea, iris, lens, and the space between your iris and cornea. The slit allows your doctor to view these structures in small sections, which makes it easier to detect any tiny abnormalities.
• Retinal exam: To prepare for a retinal exam, your eye doctor puts drops in your eyes to dilate your pupils. This makes it easier to examine the back of your eyes, otherwise known as the retina. Using a slit lamp or a special device called an ophthalmoscope, your eye doctor can examine your lens for signs of a cataract.
• Glare testing: This test re-creates the effects of headlights to see if that kind of light reduces your best corrected vision.

If you notice clouding in your eye and blurring in your vision, make an appointment with your eye doctor.

Treatment

Cataract surgery is quick and nearly painless. The surgery can be done in around 30 minutes and is one of the most common surgeries performed in the United States. During the surgery, your doctor will remove your natural lens and replace it with an artificial intraocular lens (IOL), this will significantly improve your blurred vision! There is a very high success rate for this surgery, leaving patients with improved quality of life. The good news is that cataract surgery with basic lens replacement is usually covered by Medicare and other insurance companies. Specialty IOL's can correct astigmatism, and provide distance and near vision (multifocal), reducing or even eliminating the need for glasses!

Ultimately, cataracts are natural and very common! It’s important to keep your eyes healthy and vision clear for the best possible quality of life, and we are able to help with this!

03/29/2022

What numbers do you see?

01/08/2022

Don't drive distracted!

Colorado eye doctors are seeing a problem rising on the roads that impact more than just eye health. Fatal car accidents across Colorado have increased over the course of the pandemic even though less miles were driven. In the first half of 2021, total Colorado traffic fatalities were up 15% with drivers under the age of 34 experiencing the largest increase in traffic fatalities. With driving being 90 percent visual, unaddressed vision challenges increase the risk of car accidents at any age and being involved in a car accident can put your eyes at risk of injury.

We know that car accidents cause an estimated 9,280 to 11,600 eye injuries annually. Colorado eye doctors are speaking out about the statewide safety issue while urging drivers to modify risky behavior for increased safety on the roads.

“Reducing car accidents and fatalities across Colorado is a combination of safer decision making and proper eye health. Risky driving puts your eye health, vision, and life at risk. We are asking two things of Coloradans to help make roads safer; get an annual eye exam and make safer decisions on the road,” says Dr. Jean DeMoss, Board President at the Colorado Optometric Association.

Common eye symptoms and injuries from a car accident include; black eye, blurred vision, curtain-like shadow falling over visual field, detached retina, eyelid cuts, hyphema (blood in the eye), increased floaters, scratched cornea, reduced peripheral vision, and more. Eye injuries from car accidents can be painful and can threaten vision. In addition, whiplash and concussions can cause visual system issues that impact one’s quality of life and livelihood. Take precautions today to reduce your risk of a car accident. Even if you are protected by an airbag, you can have eye injuries!

Eight Ways to Increase Safe Driving

1. Get a Comprehensive Eye Exam – Make sure your eyesight and eye health are up to the task by getting an eye exam with your eye doctor. New legislation in Colorado requires that ages 21-79 attest to having an eye exam in the last year before renewing a driver’s license. Coloradans who are 80 years or older must have an eye doctor provide a signed DR 2402 confirming that the individual has had an eye exam in the last six months and the results of that exam.

2. Reduce Distractions – With over 90 percent of Colorado drivers disclosing that they drive distracted, CDOT reports that on average 42 car accidents occur each day in the state due to distracted driving.3 Anything that takes your focus away from the road is a distraction including texting, eating, reading, navigating a smart phone or gps system, talking to passengers, caring after passengers/pets, and watching videos. Put your phone down and keep your eyes on the road!

3. Use a Seatbelt for Every Trip – Seatbelt use reduces the risk of eye injuries in a car accident.

4. The CDC reports that seatbelt use reduces serious injury and fatalities in a car accident by 50%, but still 1 in 7 adults do not buckle up.

5. Make sure that everyone in the vehicle is using a seatbelt or a car seat/booster seat for younger passengers. Motorcyclists should wear a helmet to reduce the risk of brain injury and death in the case of an accident.

6. Reduce Speeding – Of fatal accidents in Colorado, 35 percent in 2017 were speeding related.6 Speeding puts you and other drivers at risk. The rise in fatal accidents can partially be linked to simply driving too fast. Remember to stay within the posted speed limits. It’s better to be late than in an accident.

7. Sober Driving – Driving under the influence increases your risk of a car accident or arrest. Roughly, 33% of U.S. car accident fatalities involve drunk drivers.6 Don’t forget that cannabis and some prescription medications count as impaired driving.

8. Adhere to Traffic Signals – The AAA Foundation reports that 28% of car accident fatalities that occur at a traffic signal are due to running a red light. It’s simple to reduce your risk. Just stop.

1. https://quotewizard.com/news/posts/dangerous-roads-during-covid-19
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4162731/
3. https://www.codot.gov/safety/distracteddriving
4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15642817/
5. https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/seatbeltuse/index.html
6. https://www.denvergov.org/content/denvergov/en/vision-zero/2019-report.html
7. https://www.forbes.com/advisor/car-insurance/drunk-driving-statistics/
8. https://www.colorado.aaa.com/news/red-light-running-deaths-hit-10-year-high

DENVER (Aug. 29, 2019) – More than two people are killed every day on U.S. roads by impatient and reckless drivers blowing through red lights, according to new data analysis performed by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. The most recent crash data available show that 939 people were killed in...

11/25/2021

Happy Thanksgiving!

3 tips for an eye-healthy Thanksgiving feast

It's not only the holiday greens, but also the yellows, reds and oranges of a nutrient-rich diet that contribute to an eye-healthy smorgasbord this Thanksgiving.

11/05/2021

November is American Diabetes Month, and EYES are a common and very important part of diabetic health care. In fact, WebMD states that the primary cause of blindness in adults ages 20-74 is diabetes! If you are diabetic, be sure to be seen by your eye doctor yearly!

The primary cause of blindness in adults ages 20-74 is diabetes. Damage to the eyes can be occurring for years without symptoms. Your optomtetrist can help.

02/11/2021

Dr. Richard Gregory first observed this illusion in the tiles on the wall of a Bristol cafe (hence the name). The alternating light and dark bricks are staggered and the gray “mortar” lines separate the layers. But while the lines may look as if they curve, they are actually straight across and parallel.

04/04/2020

This is a good summary of evidence from the eyedocs. We are familiar with this medicine because we have to monitor patients for rare but potential eye complications.

A review of the evidence and an explanation of why this drug is a crucial element of prophylaxis for health care workers.

04/02/2020

Scientists say they have used the gene editing tool CRISPR inside someone's body for the first time, a new frontier for efforts to operate on DNA, the chemical code of life, to treat...

09/13/2019

Dr. Coco had the pleasure of implanting the first FDA approved trifocal intraocular lens called the PanOptix. The patients were ecstatic over their vision at the one day postop appointments.

07/17/2019

Check your medicine cabinet:

Altaire says the products, which are designed to be sterile, may not be, raising the risk of infections and even death, the FDA says.

06/24/2019

05/31/2019

04/03/2019

Stephen Curry has revealed that he has keratoconus.

Keratoconus occurs when your cornea — the clear, rounded front surface of your eye — thins and gradually bulges forward into a cone-like shape. This distorts the light entering the eye, causing blurred vision, and may also cause sensitivity to light and glare. Keratoconus usually affects both eyes and can begin to affect a person in their teens or twenties. The condition may progress slowly for 10 to 20 years. In a small percentage of severe cases there can be corneal scarring, and a corneal transplant may be necessary.

Here at Hines-Sight, keratoconus is one of many eye conditions that we routinely care for. We diagnose and advise patients with this condition, and fit them with specialty contact lenses, including soft/hard hybrid lenses and scleral rigid gas permeable contact lenses.

Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry was in a bit of a shooting slump from February to early March, at least by his own lofty standards...

04/01/2019

A common and frustrating problem.

Plus, how to make it stop.

02/25/2019

Lutein, meso-zeaxanthin and zeaxanthin found to enhance contrast sensitivity.

12/07/2018

Dr. Justin Coco of Hines Sight was selected to be the FIRST in Colorado to perform the newly FDA Approved Visian Toric ICL. Britnee wanted to correct both her nearsightedness and astigmatism in one procedure to get rid of her contact lenses. By the next day she was 20/20.

11/16/2018

Guest blog post by Carol L. Shields, MD: Ocular melanoma is a serious disease. This malignancy can be life-threatening. It tends to occur in middle-aged, Caucasian people, particularly those with light colored irises such as blue or green. Don’t let melanoma catch you. Beat it.