Archive for month: April, 2022

Our eyes must do a lot of self-cleaning to remain healthy. Tears, lightly spread across as a film, protect the eyes, and wash away dust, allergens, germs, and other contaminants. While this is an effective system most of the time, swimming, especially in swimming pools, can wash away tears and leave the eyes vulnerable to contamination and irritation.

Irritation and Contamination Risks for Eyes

The chlorine that is used to protect swimmers can also irritate your eyes. Recovery for healthy eyes is usually quick, though frequent swimmers may develop chronic problems which swim goggles can help prevent. Contact lens wearers should remove them while swimming. And you should especially avoid swimming after cataract and LASIK eye surgery as part of the post-operative recovery process.

What’s In the Water?

Chlorine helps to neutralize typical amounts of infectious agents in the pool, which increase according to the pool’s use by large numbers of people. Some hardier germs may survive the chlorination, though, which can result in eye infections that take advantage of already irritated eyes. Rinsing the eyes with eyewash solution can help remove lingering pathogens.

Contact Lenses and Swimming

Contact lenses limit the eyes’ ability to use tears to remove potential infections from their surface. Contact lenses can also provide a place under the lens for corneal infections to take root, so they should not be worn while swimming.

Dry Eyes

After swimming in chlorinated water, people’s eyes are typically red and irritated from the chemicals. For regular swimmers, the lack of tear film after swimming can become a chronic condition, called “dry eye,” with blurry vision and irritation, which our top eye doctors in the Front Range regularly treat in many of our patients.
Pink Eye

When water washes away the protective tear film, germs have more access to the eye even in chlorinated water where some hardier germs may remain. An infection called pink eye, or conjunctivitis, can develop, which may require professional care if it lingers.

Simple Swimmers’ Eye Care

• Don’t Wear Contacts While Swimming
• Consider Swim Goggles
• Use Eye Rinse and Eye Drops When Needed for Comfort
• See Your Eye Doctor with Any Concerns

Your Expert Eye Doctors at Shinagawa can help

Our experienced eye doctors specialize in LASIK and other refractive eye procedures that can help you have better vision and swim with less risk of damaging your eyes. Contact us for all your eye care needs.

Call our Patient Care Lines: (+632) 7-368 5238 l (+63) 917 862 7454 l (+63) 921 217 0517 for inquiries, questions, and appointments or talk to our consultants via LiveChat here on our website.

Some accidents can eventually cause a concussion, especially if the head was damaged severely.

Several areas of the brain are responsible for vision so it may not come as a surprise that concussions can cause symptoms associated with the eyes and/or vision.

Sometimes referred to as Post-Traumatic Vision Syndrome, vision problems following concussions are common and can include:

• Blurry vision or difficulty focusing
• Sensitivity to light
• Difficulty reading – you might find yourself losing your place
• Headaches when performing visual tasks
• Peripheral vision loss
• Double vision
• Difficulty moving the eyes

These symptoms can be especially disruptive to everyday life, whether in relation to returning to work or school.

Although rare, the following are more serious effects of a concussion:

• Retinal detachment: The sheer impact of a head injury causing concussion can cause the retina to detach. This requires immediate attention and surgical intervention.
• Vitreous hemorrhage: Concussions may cause the blood vessels of the eye(s) to leak into the jelly-like substance in the eye (vitreous humor), causing blurred vision, floaters, a red tint to your vision, and more. Sometimes this clears up on its own, although medication may be prescribed to speed up the healing process.
• Optic nerve damage: Increased pressure in the brain can subsequently put pressure on the optic nerve leading to partial or total loss of vision. It’s imperative to have your eyes examined after a concussion or head injury since vision loss from optic nerve damage is irreversible.

Neuro-optometrists and neuro-ophthalmologists are both specialized in treating concussions, especially as they relate to the visual system.

If you suspect a concussion, it’s important to schedule an appointment with an eye care professional and mention this. The benefits are two-fold: a comprehensive eye exam can help diagnose a concussion and can diagnose any effects of a concussion-related to the eyes, like those described above.

Schedule an eye check-up with us and let our doctors see just how healthy you and your eyes are.

Call our Patient Care Lines: (+632) 7-368 5238 l (+63) 917 862 7454 l (+63) 921 217 0517 for inquiries and appointments or talk to our consultants via LiveChat here on our website.