Most people start experiencing visual problems after the age of 50. This is due to degeneration of vision as we grow older. As a result of aging changes, you may face decreased sharpness and focusing power of your eyes.

If you find it difficult to read fine print or view close objects, you may be suffering from presbyopia. This happens when the lens of the eye becomes less flexible and can be corrected with bifocals or reading glasses. With age, the lens of your eye becomes yellow and filters out colors at the blue end of the light spectrum. Hence, you may not be able to differentiate between colors like blue, green and violet.

Another age-related vision change involves the decrease in your ability to adapt to changes in light. On the other hand, you may experience blurred vision while reading glossy materials or viewing shiny floors. This can be corrected by using sunglasses with yellow or antiglare lenses. Dry or itching eyes may also be a sign of eye aging. This happens when the tear glands do not produce adequate tears or the tear duct gets blocked.

For people above the age of 65, eye diseases can become more troublesome and serious. In such cases, your eye specialist may even recommend surgery for vision correction and improvement. Some of the common age-related eye diseases include:

Cataract – This eye disease is caused when the lens of the eye gets cloudy. As a result, your vision becomes blurred and hazy. Symptoms of this condition include dimmed vision, fogging of eyes, sensitivity to light, double vision, spots and change in pupil color. The corrective surgery is highly successful and normally, painless.

Glaucoma – Inside your eyes, there is constant circulation and drainage of fluid. Excessive fluid production or blockage can increase pressure and damage the optic nerve. Special eye drops are available to control early stage glaucoma while advanced stages need surgery. Symptoms include blurred vision, redness and eye pain, lesser side vision and halos around lights.

Macular Degeneration – Responsible for fine acute vision, the macula may degenerate and cause reduced central or straight vision. This is very common among people above the age of 55 years. Symptoms include darkness in center of vision, blurring of words and wavy appearance of straight lines. Treatment involves the use of surgical procedures before it turns into complete blindness.

We at Killeen EyeCare Center provide complete eyecare solutions. We serve Killeen, Fort Hood and Harker Heights area in Central Texas. To seek an appointment, contact us at 254-634-7805

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Thousands of people spend a major part of their day in front of the computer screen. Often, they complain of headache or eyestrain from constant staring at the monitor. Sometimes, it may become difficult to focus on distant objects. If you are having any of these symptoms, you may fall prey to computer vision syndrome (CVS).

Millions of people are unaware of the existence of this problem and still suffer from it. Apart from the discomfort and reduced vision, computer vision syndrome may lead to permanent vision damage. If your work involves frequent computer usage, it is important to take various precautions and avoid this eye problem.

Commonly, individuals spending more than two hours a day in front of a computer screen experience computer vision syndrome. The main symptoms include:

• Burning sensation in eyes
• Constantly tired eyes
• Headaches
• Lack of focus
• Blurred vision
• Shoulder and neck pain

If you are experiencing any of the above symptoms, it is important to consult an eye doctor who specializes in treatment of computer vision syndrome. They can also tell you about the correct computer working distance and provide a prescription for corrective computer eyeglasses.

People with regular eyeglasses do not bother to use another set of vision correction glasses for doing computer work. This is not a good idea. If you have computer vision syndrome, you may need computer glasses for mid-range vision clarity. Also, you must ensure that your workplace has adequate lighting to avoid squinting and strain on your eyes.

Computer eyeglasses are not very different from normal eyeglasses in appearance. Basically, the difference lies in the lenses and not the frames. Most people are prescribed with multi-focal lenses that are specially designed for computer work. When seated at the correct computer screen distance, these allow vision enhancement, both short distance and long distance.

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Derived from a Greek word, Coloboma means “curtailed” and is used to describe the eye problem which is caused by missing tissue inside or around the eye. There are various kinds of Coloboma that affect different parts of the eye, mainly including:

• Eyelid – This kind of Coloboma happens when a piece of the upper or lower eyelid is missing. Usually, eyelid Coloboma is a genetic problem or caused by underdeveloped eyelids in a baby.
• Macula – Located at the center of the eye, the macula may have Coloboma when it does not develop normally. Interruption in normal eye development in a baby or inflammation in the retina may be followed by this disorder.
• Lens – When a piece of the lens is absent in your eye, it can lead to Coloboma. This means that your vision will be unclear as the lens will not focus light on the retina properly.
• Optic nerve – Coloboma of the optic nerve may be caused by an abnormal optic nerve that is deeply hollow. Another reason for this eye problem may be a uveal Coloboma that extends to the optic nerve.
• Uvea – Alos known as Iris Coloboma, this condition occurs when the retina in the lower insider corner is missing. This gives a cat eye appearance to the iris.

In terms of demographics, Coloboma is an eye disease that is found in about one in 10,000 births. Common reasons for its occurrence include genetic problems, eye surgery or trauma.

Symptoms of Coloboma

People who have Coloboma experience reduced vision. The extent of vision impairment depends on the size of Coloboma and the impact on macula and optic nerve. In certain cases, it appears as a black indentation at the pupil’s edge while in other patients, it forms a split in the iris from the pupil to the edge of the iris. Apart from blurred vision, Coloboma leads to the appearance of a hole or odd-shaped pupil.

Diagnosis of Coloboma

A professional optometrist will diagnose whether an individual has Coloboma or not. This involves a physical exam and a detailed eye checkup by an optometrist. The symptoms, effected eye area and size of darkened area in the eye will be observed to know the kind and level of Coloboma. Several procedures like visual acuity test and refraction test may also be conducted.

Treatment Options

With no specific treatment for this problem, doctors can recommend corrective procedures for vision improvement. The use of cosmetic contact lenses, eye patches and personalized sunglasses can help in dealing with the symptoms.

For Eye Glasses and Contact Lenses contact Killeen Eyecare Center; provider of complete range of eyecare solutions in Killeen, Harker Heights, Fort Hood areas.

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Those who constantly work in front of the computer are bound to suffer from a variety of eye diseases in the long run. Nowadays, it has become unimaginable to have perfect vision and healthy eyes. Still, it is possible with a good exercising routine and quality lifestyle.
While prescription glasses and contact lenses help in vision correction, certain exercises are also essential to get effective results. Listed below are easy exercises for making your vision better and keeping your eyes healthy.

• Find a comfortable chair and sit on it. Rub your hands together and cover your eyes with cupped palms. Make sure that your nose remains uncovered and no pressure is applied on the eyeballs. Place your hands in a way that light does not enter the eyes and there are no gaps between fingers or between the palms and the nose. With closed eyes, you need to imagine blackness and focus on it. Visualize a scene or peaceful incident while taking deep breaths. Once you see deep blackness, remove the palms from your eyes and repeat the process for 3 minutes.
• Shut your eyes tightly for three to five seconds and then open them for the same amount of time. This exercise must be repeated 7 to 8 times.
• Massage your eyes with circular movements of your hands for 1 to 2 minutes. You must press closed eyes lightly to avoid hurting the eyeballs.
• On your upper eyelids, press three fingers of each hand and hold the position for 1-2 seconds before releasing them. This exercise has to be repeated 5 times.
• In a sitting posture, relax your body and then roll your eyes. This has to be done clockwise and counter-clockwise, 5 times. Between each time, you can blink your eyes.
• Find a place about 6 inches from a window and make a mark on the glass at eye level. Now, you must focus on some far away object for 10-15 seconds through the mark on the window.
• At arm’s length, hold a pencil and move your arm towards your nose. While doing this, keep your eyes focused on the pencil. Repeat this exercise 10 times.
• Up and down eye movements are also a good eye exercise. This can be done 8 times, starting from up to down. Similarly, you can move the eyes from left to right.

Following these exercising tips for eyes can help you with eye strain and prevent diseases related to eyes.

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