Nearly every disease affecting the human body has some sort of manifestation in the eye. For this reason, eye doctors refer to the eyes as the windows into our bodies. On many occasions, eye doctors are the first to diagnose a number of medical problems such as diabetes, thyroid disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and sometimes even cancer.

For these reasons, eye examinations are vital to your overall health. Our eye doctors are experts in general eye health and strive to provide patients with the most advanced therapies medicine has to offer.

In order for our eye doctors to communicate with your healthcare team, please provide us with a list of your medications and the names of the medical professionals who care for your health.

For more in-depth information on general eye care issues such as dry eye and blepharitis, please visit those pages on our website.

Blepharitis

Blepharitis is due to inflammation of the specialized glands in the eyelids known as meibomian glands. The function of these glands is to secrete a fatty material that slows down the evaporation of your eye’s tear film layer. If these glands become irritated or inflamed, they will not function properly and may lead to a number of issues such as eye or eyelid irritation, redness, pain, burning, itching, dry eye, eyelash dandruff, and pain. In some cases, the blepharitis is due to a bacterial infection or may be associated with rosacea.

The treatment of blepharitis may include using a warm compress and eyelid hygiene. In some cases, our eye doctors may prescribe eye drops or oral medications to improve your symptoms. In general, there is no cure for blepharitis, and if you do not continue the treatment regimen, your symptoms will return.

If you would like to receive more information or schedule a consultation with our doctors, please call our office at (888) 501-4496.

​​​​​​​Pterygium

A pterygium is a non-cancerous overgrowth of the skin of the eye (known as the conjunctiva) onto the sclera, which is the eye’s clear covering. Many believe that a pterygium occurs as a result of excessive exposure to sunlight and/or dusty environments, but this has never been proven.

In many cases, a pterygium is not bothersome, but in some patients, it may cause eye problems such as irritation, redness, burning, stinging, blurry vision, pain, or a foreign body sensation. In advanced cases, the pterygium may grow over the central part of the cornea leading to severe astigmatism or loss of vision.

For patients with pterygium in one or both eyes, it is important that they keep in touch with our surgeons and have eye examinations to evaluate and monitor whether the pterygium is growing in size or causing irritation to the eye. For treatment, our surgeons may recommend that you wear sunglasses and try to limit exposure to dusty environments. They may also suggest using artificial tears or other prescription eye drops to help with any irritation the pterygium may cause.

If conservative management fails, or your pterygium is advancing toward the center of the cornea, our surgeons may recommend a surgery known as ocular surface reconstruction. This procedure is used to remove the pterygium and replace the missing tissue with either your own or donor tissue. Up to 20% of the time, a pterygium may return after surgery.

If you have a pterygium and would like an evaluation, please call our office at (888) 501-4496 or fill out the online form to schedule your consultation.