Top Tips for Eye Safety this Holiday and Winter Season

With the holiday season upon us, it’s important to note the extra care we need to take to make sure the toys and gifts our children receive are safe and age-appropriate.  For this reason, Prevent Blindness America has declared December “Safe Toys and Gifts Awareness Month”.

In 2017, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported an estimated 240,000 toy-related injuries treated in United States hospital emergency departments, with an estimated 80,100 of these injuries on children younger than five. 45% of the total injuries were to the head and face area. These statistics show that consumers should keep eye safety in mind when shopping for kids this holiday season. To help them do that, Prevent Blindness has complied some important tips for ensuring safety while shopping.

Look at every toy before you buy it. Is the toy durable? Can it stand the wear and tear of everyday use without breaking, cracking or coming apart? Does it shoot objects or have sharp edges? Toys that fail these tests should be reconsidered.

Before you purchase a toy:

Read all warnings and instructions on the box. Ask yourself if the toy is …

For as long as Dr. David Way, OD, has been in practice, he has endeavored to employ frontline technology in the care of his patients. He explains that it was because of this he was an early adopter of optomap ultra-widefield (UWF™) retinal imaging technology.  Way is a big proponent of thoroughly examining the retina and aims to help patients understand the importance of comprehensive retinal exams.  “I help them to understand that the eye is the only part of the body that we can observe nerves and blood vessels without doing a CRT or an MRI; and that when I am examining them, I am checking ocular health, as well as, indicators of issues such diabetes, glaucoma, macular degeneration or hypertension”, explains Way.

Patients often refuse to be dilated because they are in a hurry, or simply want to avoid the discomfort. An optomap image, which can be obtained in a fraction of a second through an undilated pupil, allows them to receive a retinal exam without the perceived inconvenience. Over the years at Way’s practice, Spring Klein Vision Center, the acceptance rate for optomap is over 70% which has proved to be a revenue generator and a boon …