“I had a lot of eye infections caused by contacts…
Laser Vision Correction solved the issues.”

The vast majority say vision is their most valued sense. So why do so many of us overlook routine eye exams and other simple steps toward better vision?

Never has there been an era in which more people are aware of their health and how to improve it. The media feeds this raging appetite with ideas and advice on everything from cancer to colds and flu. The Internet is awash in medical information. And gym memberships… well, just try to squeeze into a spin class at the local health club.

And yet with all that we do to get and stay healthy, the health of our eyes often goes, well, overlooked.

In Canada is has been estimated that 86% of the population fear losing their sight above all other senses, yet somewhere between 20% and 50% of us (depending on the data you trust) have not had an eye examination in the past five years. People value their sight above almost anything else, but often don’t take very basic steps to preserve or perhaps enhance their vision.

The first and most obvious step toward better eye health is to make an appointment with an ophthalmologist or optometrist. Only a trained professional can provide the accurate and helpful information that stems from a comprehensive dilated eye exam. These brief, painless exams not only reveal your visual acuity, they also give your eye doc a clear view of the blood vessels in the eye which can reveal the onset of glaucoma or even diabetes.

During a dilated eye exam, drops are put in the eyes to dilate the pupil and allow more light to enter the eye. This enables the doctor to get a good look at the back of the eyes and examine them in microscopic detail. “During a comprehensive eye exam I am looking for problems but also thinking about solutions,” says Dr. Angela Malik an OD with Focus Eye. “If a patient’s vision is sub-optimal, I am thinking ‘What will help this patient to see better?’”

For some, seeing better is a matter of getting fitted for glasses or contacts. But many others want to rid themselves of the hassles that come with lenses and so opt for Laser Vision Correction (refractive surgery) which corrects for nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism.

“I had a lot of eye infections caused by contacts,” says Madison Brown, 22, who attributes her problems to a combination of “dust and over use.” Then the recent university graduate underwent an Intralase SBK procedure at Focus and found that “Laser Vision Correction solved the issues”.

According to the National Eye Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, there are many simple steps we can take to improve our eye health and/or prevent future problems. In addition to a proper eye exam, we should quit (or never start) smoking, maintain good body weight, wear protective eyewear (polycarbonate lenses for industrial work, sun glasses for outdoor play), and eat right.

A diet rich in fruits and vegetables, particularly dark leafy greens such as spinach, kale, or collard greens, is important for keeping your eyes healthy. Research has also shown there are eye health benefits from eating fish high in omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, tuna, and halibut.
A survey by the Ocular Nutrition Society found that although 78% of Baby Boomers rank vision as the most important of their five senses and 55% worried about vision loss almost as much as they worried about heart disease or cancer, almost 60% of those surveyed were not aware of the beneficial role of omega-3 fatty acids in eye health.

Additionally, 66% of those surveyed by the ONS (an American organization which does not manufacture supplements, but does have sponsors that sell eye health supplements) were not aware of the role of lutein, found in green leafy vegetables as well as egg yolks and animal fat, and 89% were not aware of the role of zeaxanthin — two naturally occurring substances which accumulate in the human retina and improve and enhance vision.
“I had Laser Vision Correction more than four years ago and it changed my life,” says Thom, a fit, 45-year-old Focus Eye patient. “But I didn’t stop there. I routinely gulp down an Omega 3-6 supplement and make it a point to eat leafy greens at least a few times each week. It’s easy, and it just makes sense.”

We’ve reached a point in history where we can do more than we ever could to see better, and see better for longer. Excellent eye health is achievable for the vast majority. The problem is that we often don’t take advantage of all the good — sometimes very simple — options that are available.

“There will always be discount clinics…
you have to ask what you are getting for $1,000.”

When calculating the true value of Laser Vision Correction what factors should go into the equation?

Freedom is a funny thing. When you don’t have it, it affects the way you look at everything. When you do have it, often times it is taken for granted. So it goes with Laser Vision Correction (LVC). Many people will endure with their glasses and contacts, and all the issues that orbit around those two options. But when the choice is made to undergo LVC, and the initial healing is done, they forget about ever wearing glasses and contacts and focus on other things.

After 20 years as Ottawa and Eastern Ontario’s premier provider of Laser Vision Correction Provider one thing stands out at Focus Eye: patients continue to revel in the freedom LVC provides them in their day to day life, whatever their interest or reasons for having a procedure.

Who undergoes LVC?

Patient profiles from Focus (collected over 20 years and more than 35,000 procedures) reveal that people from all walks of life – and all economic levels of society – undergo LVC. Just as interesting is the fact that, when asked, people refer to LVC as an investment in their well-being.

‘After raising the kids, it was time for me to do something for myself’ This is a common refrain among patients. But people also point out that ‘LVC versus glasses’ is not about choosing between a Rolex and a Timex. It’s about choosing between hassles and no hassles. “The nuisance of having to wear contacts and clean them caught up to me,” says Ryan Silverson, a social worker, husband, a father to two young girls. “I was just fed up.”

The argument for convenience is compelling. And the vast majority of Focus Eye patients rave about ‘little things’ being easier – everything from seeing the alarm clock when they wake up to the label on the shampoo bottle label. But anecdotes are no substitute for a proper cost analysis when trying to discern if a service like LVC is actually worth it.

Value Proposition

The cost of wearing contact lenses for 15 years is conservatively estimated to be $8,000, while some put the dollar amount at much more. (See below)

The economics of LVC have, however, always been muddied by discount clinics and volume retailers who frequently take a ‘bait and switch’ approach to pricing, offering an impressively low price in external ads in the hopes of getting people through the door before hiking their internal prices up (often depending on what they think a customer can afford).

“There will always be discount clinics offering cut-rate prices for questionable quality,” says Jennifer Kearns, RN, Clinical Manager at Focus Eye. “You have to ask what you are getting for your ‘$490 per eye’. And you have to ask how many people actually ended up being upsold to a much higher price by the time they actually went ahead with a procedure.”

At Focus Eye, treatments are not ‘one-size fits’ all. Rather, procedures are only recommended on the basis of unique consultation results and the expertise of our surgeons, who’ve adopted as their Standards of Care the two procedures (Intralase SBK and PRK) which they trust to give patients the best possible visual outcomes.

When asked about the cost of LVC compared with the results he’s seen, Ryan Silverson says unflinchingly: “It was absolutely worth it.”

Why Now?

When it comes to LVC and the questions ‘Why now?’ and ‘Why Focus?’, the answers are reflected in what Focus Eye patients receive in terms of pre- and post-operative care, including a Lifetime Commitment to work with patients to help them achieve their best visual outcomes, as well as a willingness to deliver only the most advanced and safest procedures available.

Intralase SBK is, according to experts the world over, the gold standard for refractive surgery. “The fact that Intralase SBK is extremely safe and consistently helps our patients achieve excellent vision — sometimes exceeding what the ever had with glasses or contacts — explains why our surgeons had such an easy decision to adopt it as a Standard of Care,” Kearns explains.

“Going into Laser Vision [Correction], I thought the best I could hope for was the same level of vision but without the inconvenience of eye glasses,” says Randy Little, Barrhaven pharmacist and Intralase SBK patient. “I got that, but I got more because I got enhanced quality of vision as well.”

As for issues such as night vision problems and haloes these ‘risks’ have been all but eliminated with Wavefront (CustomVue) pre-testing, while Intralase SBK is delivering results that some people find downright startling.

“It was like someone had opened the shutters on the windows,” says Ottawa math teacher and mom, Amy Ruff, who raves about life in the classroom. “I can see the board, I can see the kids. I can see the back of the room. I can see the small print, the big print…I can see it all.”
So why did she wait so long to have LVC? “Ah ha, that’s the best question!” she laughs. “I have no idea.”

After 20 years and more than 35,000 procedures, the experience of the surgeons and staff at Focus Eye makes a compelling case for the merits of LVC. But it is the results of patients that speak loudest.

The Cost of LVC versus Lenses

A conservative estimate of the cost of soft disposable contact lenses plus a pair of back-up glasses looks like this:

A more aggressive cost analysis comes from Abbott Laboratories, which is among the world’s largest makers of refractive technology. Abbott has generated a “contact lens calculator” to determine the cost of a lifetime spent wearing contact lenses. The estimates are shocking (if perhaps a little on the high side):

For a soft contact wearer who is 40 years old, the cost is calculated at $14,600, while for a 21-year-old the cost is pegged at $29,200. Users of extended-wear lenses pay approximately $2,500 less, according to Abbott.

Whether it’s almost $8,200+ or closer to $30,000, the cost of corrective lenses certainly exceeds the $5,000 associated with most advanced forms of LVC available today.

They say my vision is ‘20/20’… but as I see it, it’s perfect.”

Ryan Silverson’s burly build and bald head give him the look of a bar-room bouncer or perhaps WWF star. But spend a few minutes with the 37-year-old and you find yourself in the company of a mild-mannered husband, father, and social worker.

On the day we meet Ryan is eager to talk about a recent family vacation to Turks & Caicos where he spent upwards of 5 hours a day in the pool with his 3-year-old daughter while his wife minded their baby in the shade.

“Not having to wearing glasses or contact while swimming was terrific,” says Ryan. “I hadn’t been able to open my eyes under water in years.

“It was great not having to worry about contacts falling out,” he adds, noting that he’d been wearing lenses for 7 years prior to undergoing his Intralase SBK procedure at Focus late last year.

A Hospital Outreach Worker with the Canadian Mental Health Association who power-lifts and rides ATVs in his spare time, Ryan is a naturally warm person who draws people in with a quick smile and easy laugh. But ask him and he’ll tell you his eyesight has become his most welcome asset.

“I’m a social worker and I’m out in the community a lot. I have to be able to see addresses and spot clients. If I can’t see properly at a distance it’s a real problem,” he explains. “It means I can’t do my job.”

After years with lenses, Ryan had grown frustrated until “finally the nuisance of having to wear contacts and clean them caught up to me,” he says. “I’d had enough.” He made an appointment for a consultation at Focus and was relieved to learn that he was a candidate for Laser Vision Correction.

Within minutes of having his procedure, Ryan was seeing life differently – more clearly, to be precise. This improved quality of vision came courtesy of a Wavefront-guided Intralase SBK procedure. “If I knew then what I know now, I would have booked my surgery the day after I was prescribed lenses,” he laughs. His vision is “technically a little better than 20/20… but as I see it it’s just perfect!”

Jennifer Stewart explains how her life improved after a-35 second, laser eye surgery by an Ottawa doctor considered a leader in the field

By Jennifer Stewart, Ottawa Citizen

Less than 24 hours since my laser eye surgery, I am back at Focus Eye Centre in Ottawa for one of several post-operation appointments. My eyes look droopy and are bloodshot, but my vision has never been better. I read the chart on the wall, and learn that my eyesight has improved seven lines since the surgery and will continue to get better throughout the healing process. In the mere 35 seconds it took the lasers to treat my eyes, my quality of life is forever changed.

The decision to finally “bite the bullet” and get laser eye surgery was a long time in the making. As a writer, my livelihood rests in my ability to see — a sense heightened by glasses since the age of 14. On days I would forget or misplace my glasses, focusing on a computer screen was a huge struggle that usually ended with a pounding headache and an early night to bed. With a fear of touching my eyes, contacts were never an option.

Deciding enough was enough, I booked a consultation in October. My nerves were eased knowing that technological advancements in laser eye surgery have made the procedure safer with reduced recovery times than ever before. At my consultation, I meet with Dr. David Edmison, medical director of Focus Eye Centre who has performed more than 30,000 laser vision correction procedures, and learn about two surgery options — PRK (photo-refractive keratectomy) and SBK (sub-Bowman’s keratomileusis). While both are forms of advanced laser vision correction, SBK is a relatively new technology that is changing the face of laser eye surgery in Canada and abroad.

“This is very exciting,” said Edmison, an Ottawa-born surgeon and early adopter of laser vision correction in Canada. “We are doing an extremely safe procedure that has patients back to their normal routine in a matter of hours versus days.”

So what is it exactly? Intralase SBK uses an infrared beam of light to make a thin flap on the eye by a process called photo-disruption.

Using focused and quick laser pulses, a beam of laser light creates a microscopic bubble of carbon dioxide and water vapour. Thousands of these bubbles are precisely positioned to define the dimensions of the flap and hinge location, which the surgeon can then lift for treatment by the laser. After treatment, the flap is snugly repositioned. Given my need for a quick recovery, I decide that SBK is my best option and book my appointment.

Surgery cost varies depending on where you have it done and what surgery you choose, with prices ranging from around $2,000 to $5,500. For SBK, the cost is approximately $5,000. Laser eye surgery for correcting nearsightedness, farsightedness or astigmatism is considered cosmetic surgery and is not covered by OHIP, although some extended health insurance plans may provide partial coverage. The surgery is considered a deductible medical expense for income tax.

As with any surgery, there are also some risks. Although very rare with new technologies, some patients experience decreased night vision because of halos and glares and have persistently dry eyes.

Surgery day is finally here and despite knowing the risks, I’m surprisingly not nervous. I am excited. I arrive with my cameraman (and husband) in tow. We are greeted by Jenifer Cash, a surgical processor at Focus Eye, who walks me through what to expect and answers any questions. Looking for reassurance, I ask her if she’s had laser eye surgery. To my surprise, her eyes well up with tears and she tells me she’s not usually asked that question. “It sounds cliche, but it (laser eye surgery) changed my life. When I got up from the operating chair and could see my sister’s face in the waiting room, something that before was a blur from that distance. I was amazed,” said Cash.

She takes me into the operating room, where I am met by Edmison and a team of assistants. Preparation for the procedure begins. My eyes feel fine, but are frozen by several eye drops and are propped open by a speculum. From here, it is a blur. I feel no pain, but a slight pressure on my eye. I can see things passing in front of me. From my research, I have an idea of what is happening, but there is no discomfort or even sensation of my eyes being touched. Within 20 minutes, the procedure is done and I am sitting up. For a girl who couldn’t put in contacts, I am pretty proud of myself and relieved at the ease of the surgery.

Tired — that is the word I would use to describe how I felt following the surgery.

In what seems like survival mode, my eyes feel like they are closing without my consent. For the next 24 hours, I transition between sleeping on the couch and my bed. By Sunday, less than 48 hours since my surgery, I am back to watching television and working on my laptop.

As I type away on my computer, I instinctively reach for my glasses and put them on. Everything becomes a blur. I breathe a sigh of relief and put my glasses back down on my desk. For the first time since the surgery, it hits me: I don’t need them anymore. I can see perfectly well without glasses for the first time in more than a decade.

It’s been five weeks since the surgery and I have only one regret — that I didn’t do this sooner.

© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

(Read original…)

Whether it’s working with pro hockey players or serving the Royal Family of Dubai, Dr. Bill Henry and his clan are finding life much improved since
having LVC.

Dr. William (Bill) Henry’s story is a familiar one: a middle-aged man who had laboured with glasses for years finally decides to have Laser Vision Correction.

But when you look a little closer, you realize that Bill’s tale has some interesting twists. At 56, he is the team dentist for Ottawa’s NHL club, a position he has held since the club first came to town 18 years ago. And while he has worn glasses since his mid-20s, the husband and father only recently gave LVC a second look after his daughter Katerine underwent her own procedure and came home with nothing but rave reviews.

“She needed lenses for distance vision,” says Bill. When she came home for Christmas last year she decided enough was enough and made an appointment with Focus. “Her procedure went very smoothly and she’s talked about it as one of the best things she’s ever done for herself.”

When pressed on exactly why LVC was such a life-changed for his daughter, Bill explains that Katerine “has been an airline attendant in Dubai for the past three and a half years”, serving the Royal Family on a plane the “equivalent to Air Force One” in the United States.

“Her experience with LVC gelled my thinking on the subject,” says Bill, whose wife, José Lanctot, underwent her own procedure to correct for reading vision (Monovision). “It’s worked for all of us. For me it’s like Freedom 56,” he enthuses.

Life at Scotiabank Place is much easier. Seated in his familiar place — two rows behind the home-team bench — where Bill acts as dentist-on-site for both Ottawa and visiting teams, he is “now able to follow the play without the annoyance of glasses”.

“I always had to take my glasses on and off.” Now, when the puck goes in the corner or a player takes a hit, Bill sees the action in high definition.

Over the years, he says he’s seen countless players struggle with contact lenses and wonders aloud what would have happened to some of them had they undergone LVC. “Ron Tugnutt was always looking for his contacts,” says Bill of the former Ottawa goalie from 1996-99. “If he’d had it done, it would have prolonged his career.”

Away from the ice and his private practice, Bill is able to enjoy rural living on his farm in the community of Dunrobin in Kanata, where he and his wife used to breed horses.

These days, the horses are gone but the natural surroundings still hold their allure. “It’s cool to be able to run through the woods without having to wear glasses and getting them all steamed up. It’s tremendous to see nature at its finest: now I can pick the birds out in the trees, whether they are hawks or owls, and spot deer.”