Glaucoma has been described as the "sneak thief" of sight because of its slow, insidious and often painless nature.  Glaucoma is a disease caused by increased intraocular pressure (IOP) resulting either from a malformation or malfunction of the eye's drainage structures.

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Dry Eye (also called dry eye syndrome) is a very common  medical condition that goes undiagnosed in many individuals. Dry eyes occur when  people either don't have the correct composition of tears or they don't have  enough tears on the surface of their eyes to lubricate the eyes and keep them  comfortable.

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LASIK Eye Surgery options at Graf Optical

Graf Optical Family Eye Care and Glaucoma has a long history in the Twin Cities of delivering quality medical eye care. When our patients are ready to choose laser eye surgery for their visual correction needs, Graf Optical utilizes only the best eye surgeons in the Twin Cities and the highest quality Lasik surgery facilities. Graf Optical Family Eye Care and Glaucoma proudly chooses to co-manage our patients with Lasik Plus .  Lasik Plus has three convenient locations in the Twin Cities at Maple Grove, Edina, and now Oakdale. The laser eye surgeons Dr. Awad, Dr. Buntrock, Dr. Richie, and Dr. Sharpe have cumulatively performed over 100,000 laser eye surgeries. With such vast experience Graf Optical trusts our patients to the leader in the laser eye surgery correction more than any other surgery center in the Twin Cities. Our doctors have performed thousands of pre-operative lasik surgery evaluations and are able to match you with the surgery center that best fits your needs.

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What is diabetic eye disease?

Diabetic eye disease refers to a group of eye problems that people with diabetes may face as a complication of diabetes. All can cause severe vision loss or even blindness.

Diabetic eye disease may include:

• Diabetic retinopathy—damage to the blood vessels in the retina.
• Cataracts - clouding of the eye's lens. Cataracts develop at an earlier age in people with diabetes. increase in fluid pressure inside the eye that leads to optic nerve damage and loss of vision.
• Glaucoma- A person with diabetes is nearly twice as likely to get glaucoma as other adults.

What is diabetic retinopathy?

Diabetic retinopathy is the most common diabetic eye disease and a leading cause of preventable blindness in American adults. It is caused by changes in the blood vessels of the retina.

In some people with diabetic retinopathy, blood vessels may swell and leak fluid. In other people, abnormal new blood vessels grow on the surface of the retina. The retina is the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye. A healthy retina is necessary for good vision.

If you have diabetic retinopathy, at first you may not notice changes to your vision. But over time, diabetic retinopathy can get worse and cause vision loss. Diabetic retinopathy usually affects both eyes.

A comprehensive diabetic eye exam at Graf Optical Family Eye Care and Glaucoma includes a dilated eye exam with digital retinal photography and threshold visual fields. Below is a picture of the way a patient may see the world when afflicted with diabetes:

For more information please visit: http://www.nei.nih.gov/health/diabetic/retinopathy.asp

Diabetic Retinopathy This complication of diabetes is a leading cause of blindness among middle-aged Americans.  The longer a person has had diabetes the more apt they are to develop diabetic retinopathy.  Laser surgery can slow the progression of this disease along with management of blood glucose levels.  There are 2.4 million people blind from retinopathy worldwide.

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Age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) is a degenerative condition of the macula.  The macula is the central part of the retina and represents the "sweet spot" in one's vision.  Macular degeneration is one of the most common cause of vision loss in the United States in those 55 or older, and its prevalence increases with age.  AMD is caused by a brittling of the arteries that supply the retina.  This hardening of the arteries deprives the delicate retinal tissue of oxygen and nutrients that it needs to function and thrive. Without this oxygen and nutrients in the macula, the central vision detriorates.  Eight million people are legally blind from macular degeneration worldwide and as the population ages this number is expected to grow.  A person afflicted with macular degeneration would see the world with a loss of their central vision. This loss would be illustrated below:

Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD)

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A corneal abrasion is a painful scrape or scratch of the surface of the clear part of the eye.  This clear tissue of the eye is known as the cornea.  This transparent window covers the iris, the circular colored portion of the eye.  The cornea has many nerve endings just under the surface, so that any disruption of the surface may be painful. 

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How enhancing your vision can give you that extra edge in competition Everyone is constantly on the lookout for an ‘edge’ in sports and, since vision is extremely important (over 70% of perceptual input is visual) optometrists who are sports vision practitioners can help to provide that edge.

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