About Cynthia Kiernan

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So far Cynthia Kiernan has created 411 blog entries.

Why Glasses in the Winter Are a Must

Not everyone understands the importance of sunglasses when the weather turns cold.

Polarized sunglasses are usually associated with Summer, but in some ways it is even more important to wear protective glasses during the Winter.

It’s getting to be that time of year when the sun sits at a much different angle, and its rays impact our eyes and skin at a lower position. This translates to an increase in the exposure of harmful UV rays, especially if we are not wearing the proper sunglasses as protection.

Polarized sunglasses, which are much different than the older dye-tinted lenses, are both anti-reflective and UV resistant. A good-quality polarized sunglass lens will protect you from the entire UV spectrum. This not only preserves your vision, but it also protects the skin around the eyes, which is thought to have a much higher rate of susceptibility to skin cancer.

Snow poses another issue that can be countered by polarized sunglasses.

Snow on the ground tends to act as a mirror because of its white reflective surface and this reflection can become a hindrance while […]

2024-10-29T04:00:00+00:00October 29th, 2024|Blog|

What to Know about a Freckle in the Eye

Choroidal nevus is the fancy term for a freckle in the back of the eye.

This lesion arises from a collection of cells that make pigment in the choroid, which lines the back of the retina and supplies the retina with nutrients. These choroidal nevi (plural of nevus) are usually grayish in color and develop in about 5-10% of the adult population. They are usually asymptomatic and detected during a routine dilated eye exam.

Just like any freckle on our body, we should monitor it for any change in size or growth.  This is usually done with a photograph of the nevus and annual exams are normally recommended to monitor any change.  

In addition to a photograph, other tests that can be used to monitor the nevus are:

  • Optical coherence tomography – a test that uses light waves to take cross-section pictures of the retina. This test is used to detect if the nevus is elevated or if fluid is present underneath the retina.
  • Ultrasound – uses sound waves to measure the size and elevation of the nevus.
  • Fluorescein angiography – […]
2024-10-22T04:00:00+00:00October 22nd, 2024|Blog|

13 MORE Eye-Popping Eye Jokes

Ready or not…here are 13 more jokes to make you groan!

1. Patient: "What’s that floater doing in my eye, doctor?"  Doctor: “The sidestroke.”

2. Doctor: “Have your eyes ever been checked before?”  Patient: “No, they’ve always been hazel.”

3. Why did the cyclops have to close his school?  He had only one pupil!

4. Why wouldn’t the optometrist learn any jokes?  He had heard that a joke can help break the eyes.

5. What is it called when you poke your eye with safety glasses?  Eye-rony!

6. Did you here about the new website for people with chronic eye pain?  It’s a site for sore eyes.

7. When are your eyes not eyes?  When an onion makes them water!

8. Why do beekeepers have such beautiful eyes?  Because beauty is in the eye of the bee holder!

9. Why were the teacher’s eyes crossed?  Because she couldn’t control her pupils.

10. What's your eye doctor's favorite treat?  Candy cornea!

11. What has four […]

2024-10-15T04:00:00+00:00October 15th, 2024|Blog|

10 Eye-Popping Eye Jokes

Need a chuckle or a groan?  Here you go…

1. Did you hear about the guy who just found out he was color blind?  It hit him right out of the purple!

2. What happened to the lab tech when he fell into the grinder?  He made a spectacle of himself.

3. Why is our staff so amazing?  They were all bright pupils!

4. Why did the smartphone have to wear glasses?  It lost all of its contacts.

5. What did one pupil say to the other?  I’m dilated to meet you.

6. What do you call a potato wearing glasses?  A Spec-Tater!

7. What do you call an optician living on an Alaskan island?  An optical Aleutian.

8. What was the innocent lens’s excuse to the policeman?  "I’ve been framed, officer!"

9. Where is the eye located?  Between the H and the J.

10. Where does bad light end up?  In Prism!

 

2024-10-09T04:00:00+00:00October 9th, 2024|Blog|

The Eye as an Indicator of Alzheimer’s?

In 2020, Alzheimer's Disease International estimated that the number of people living with dementia worldwide – nearly 55 million in 2020 – will almost double every 20 years.

There is no single test that can show if a person has Alzheimer's, but doctors can almost always determine if a person has dementia, although it may be difficult to determine the exact cause. Diagnosing Alzheimer's requires careful medical evaluation, neurological testing, and sometimes brain imaging and blood tests to rule out other causes of dementia.

Most of the testing for early disease – MRI scans of the brain, brain PET scans looking for amyloid, and spinal taps looking for certain proteins in the spinal fluid – are not very accurate, and they are invasive and often expensive.

A few years ago, researchers have turned to findings in the eye to help with early detection and are hoping to find ways to make the diagnosis earlier when potential treatments may have a better outcome. There is also hope that these tests will be less expensive and invasive then the other options.

One […]

2024-10-02T04:00:00+00:00October 2nd, 2024|Blog|

Aging and the Eye

Have you ever wondered what happens to the visual system as we age? What does the term "second sight" mean? What is presbyopia? What are the eyes more susceptible to as the aging process occurs? What can be done to prevent certain aging factors of the eye? The answer lies in a theory known as apoptosis (no that's not the name of the latest pop artist).

Apoptosis is the pre-programmed life of every cell in our body. Most studies show that it's a function of our programmed DNA. It's the ability for cells to survive and thrive in the anatomical environment. The body's ability to withstand and thrive during the aging process depends on proper nutrition, good mental health, exercise, and adequate oxygen supply. That's why studies have shown smoking can shorten your life by a decade or more.

In regards to aging and the eye, there is a phenomenon during the 6th to 7th decade of life called "second sight."   This is simply progressive nearsightedness in older […]

2024-09-24T04:00:00+00:00September 24th, 2024|Blog|

Ways Pregnancy Can Affect Your Eyes

We all know that during pregnancy, a woman's body goes through a great deal of change hormonally and physiologically.  But did you know her eyes change as well?  Below are some of the most common effects pregnancy can have on the eye.

  • Corneal changes. In some cases, pregnancy can cause the cornea, the front window of the eye, to change curvature and even swell, leading to shifts in glasses and contact lens prescriptions. In addition, changes in the chemistry of the tear film can lead to dry eyes and contact lens intolerance. It is for these reasons that it is generally not recommended to have any new contact lens fitting or new glasses prescription checks until several months postpartum. We want to get the most accurate measurements possible.
  • Retinal changes.  Many different conditions can affect the retina during pregnancy. If the pregnant woman has diabetes, diabetic eye disease can progress by 50%. In women with preeclampsia, a condition where blood pressure rises significantly, over 40% of women can show changes in the retinal blood […]
2024-09-17T04:00:00+00:00September 17th, 2024|Blog|

10 Eye-Opening Eye Facts

1. Vision is so important to humans that almost half of your brain’s capacity is dedicated to visual perception.

2. The most active muscles in your body are the muscles that move your eyes.

3. The surface tissue of your cornea (the epithelium) is one of the quickest-healing tissues in your body. The entire corneal surface can turn over every 7 days.

4. Your eyes can get sunburned. It is called photokeratitis and it can make the corneal epithelium slough off just like your skin peels after a sunburn.

5. Ommatophobia is the fear of eyes.

6. You blink on average about 15 to 20 times per minute. That blink rate may decrease by 50% when you are doing a visually demanding task like reading or working on a computer – and that’s one reason those tasks can lead to more dry-eye symptoms.

7. Your retinas see the world upside down, but your brain flips the image around for you.

8. If you are farsighted (hyperopia) your eye is short, and if you are shortsighted (myopia) your eye is long.

9. An eyelash has […]

2024-09-10T04:00:00+00:00September 10th, 2024|Blog|

Meds That Can Make Your Eyes Drier

Dry eye is a very common problem that affects women more than men and becomes more prevalent as people get older.

Signs and symptoms can range from mild to severe.  It can present in many ways, with symptoms that can include a foreign body sensation, burning, stinging, redness, blurred vision, and dryness. Tearing is another symptom and occurs because the eye initially becomes irritated from the lack of moisture and then there is a sudden flood of tears in response to the irritation.  Unfortunately, this flood of tears can wash out other important components of the tear film that are necessary for proper eye lubrication.

There are medications that have the potential to worsen the symptoms of dry eye. Here are some of the broad categories and specific medications that have been known to potentially worsen the symptoms:

  • Blood Pressure Medications – Beta blockers such as Atenolol (Tenormin), and diuretics such as Hydrochlorothiazide.
  • GERD (gastro-esophageal reflux disorder) Medications – There have been reports of an increase in dry eye symptoms by patients on these medications, which include Cimetidine (Tagamet), Rantidine […]
2024-09-03T04:00:00+00:00September 3rd, 2024|Blog|

The 20-20-20 Rule

In our modern world, people spend hours on end staring at computer screens, smartphones, tablets, e-readers, and books that require their eyes to maintain close focus.

For most people (all except those who are nearsighted and aren’t wearing their glasses), their eyes’ natural focus point is far in the distance. In order to move that focus point from far to near, there is an eye muscle that needs to contract to allow the lens of the eye to change its shape and bring up-close objects into focus. This process is called accommodation.

When we accommodate to view close objects, that eye muscle has to maintain a level of contraction to keep focused on the near object. And that muscle eventually gets tired if we continuously stare at the near object. When it does, it may start to relax a bit and that can cause vision to intermittently blur because the lens shape changes back to its distance focal point and the near object becomes less clear.

Continuing to push the eyes to focus on near objects once the focus […]

2024-08-28T04:00:00+00:00August 28th, 2024|Blog|