Friday, April 13, 2012

What's a dilation? Drops...I can't drive....what???


My favorite!  As you know the visit to the eye doctor is pain free.  There aren't any fun gadgets that cause any sort of discomfort whatsoever, even children and the elderly have nothing to fear.  I truly believe it's part of the reason most people say "but wait you're not a real doctor, technically".  So here is the golden moment to inflict a small amount of discomfort to a patient, finally.  

Tropicamide, Phenylephrine or Parmyd are three of the most popular dilating drops we use in our offices. They work on the sympathetic system (excites for joy/fear) in a very localized way, an extremely small amount may enter the blood stream causing minor side affects (excitement, sweating, heart racing, increase body heat.... like drinking a coffee really fast) that subside within several hours.    Also they are contraindicated (skip the dilation) if you're pregnant, make sure to tell your Optometrist.  The drops can sting a little bit once inserted; this is the eye doctor inflicting "pain" on the patient. Within the half hour your pupils will be dilated, photophobic (light sensitive) and your vision will be blurred.  They will remain this way for about 4-6 hours, bring a driver with you otherwise you shouldn't have this procedure done that day.  

Once you return to the patient chair we do exactly the opposite of what you want, we shine really bright lights in your eyes.  The doctor will either ask you to lie down or sit upright looking in many different directions.  Essentially we are looking all around the entire globe of the eye!  We can diagnose ocular diseases (ie. cataract, glaucoma, retinal detachments, tumors...etc.) and systemic diseases (diabetes, anemia, MS, cholesterol, high blood pressure...etc.). The eyes are considered part of your neurological system; therefore anything happening in the body can be seen in the eyes.  Now doesn't that sound more fun then having pints of blood taken? I still highly recommend a yearly exam with your primary care physician to support our findings or suspicions.  Bet you had no idea the power of a dilated fundus exam; well here are your reasons to say yes next time.  The frequency of the dilation for patients with systemic diseases should be once a year, everyone else can skip to every 2-3 years.  

See and Be Seen! at Eyed LA Optometry in Brentwood, West Los Angeles

www.eyedla.com



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