We still see allergies to the preservatives in contact lens solutions in our Fort Collins Contact Lens Clinic but at a much lower frequency than in the past.

Thimerosal, (sodium ethylmercurithiosalicylate)  is an older contact lens solution preservative whose composition is about half mercury. It as commonly used in very low doses in contact lens disinfecting solutions is an excellent preservative but causes a reasonably high number of allergic reactions. It has been used in childhood vaccines and a subject of controversy over the years as a possible cause of autism. There are no significant studies to confirm a relationship,  but similar to contact lens solutions, it is being phased out. You will often see vaccines that are touted as mercury free.

Chlorhexidine is a chemical antiseptic that is very effective at killing bacteria. It was also widely used in the past in contact lens solutions prescribed by eye doctors but frequently caused red eyes, vague forms of  eye irritation, and sometimes significant conjunctivitis and  discomfort. Like Thimerosal, it has largely been phased out of contact lens care and we never reccomend it in our Ft Collins Eye Practice. It is still widely used in the dental field to treat gum disease and as a disinfectant.

Benzalkonium chloride was used in the past and is still used today is some nasal sprays, cleaning solutions, and various other hygienic products. It is a good disinfectant but at high enough levels may not only serve as an allergen but cause serious damage to the corneal tissue the contact lens rests on.

The next generation of sensitive eyes contact lens solutions proved to have about the same rate of allergic reactions, just for different people. Switching often cured the problem for those allergic to former solutions but created problems for new users.

Many generations of solutions have since come to pass. Today the large molecule preservatives are favored by optometrists since they fail to build up in the contact lens matrix, exceeding the pore size of the lenses.

The problem today rests in generic contact lens solutions, often colored and labeled to look like the brand solutions. Sometimes they are OK, at other times they are using these older toxic preservatives that should have been off the market a long time ago. To compound the confusion, the formulations may change in the middle of the shelf for the same generic brand, even though the box appears identical.

The best bet today is to stick with a brand name solution your eye doctor reccomends or use one of the hydrogen peroxide based systems. The drawback to hydrogen peroxide has always been it is too easy to make a mistake, and hydrogen peroxide is very uncomfortable when placed in your eye without neutralization!

Spend a few extra minutes during your next visit to the optometrist and ask their advice on what is the best contact lens care regimin avaialbe to keep your eyes healthy and seeing well.

Headaches come from many different sources and people often bring their child to see the eye doctor first to rule out vision problems as a cause. Headaches are the second most common reason parent bring their children in to our Fort Collins Optometrist,  Practice Usually it is not a vision related problem, but there are cases that have a direct correlation with the eyes. If headaches are related to eye problems, most of the time your optometrist will uncover a specific visual task the headaches seem to center around. It could be reading, computer use, video games or time in the sun.

Eyeglass frames can cause pressure behind the ears and on the side of the head if not properly adjusted. Frames that are tilted can alter the effective lens prescription and result in eye strain. Nickel is a common component in many metal frames (and in parts of plastic frames). Nickel allergies are fairly common and can cause discomfort, itching and possible mild headaches.

Your child’s eyeglasses prescription may cause headaches under certain conditions. Large uncorrected amounts of farsightedness are probably the most common cause in children. With farsightedness, they may have the focusing capacity to pass the eye doctors chart test with flying colors while not wearing prescription lenses. In doing so, they may be close to using all of their focusing reserve capacity. This would be like spending all day walking around carrying close to the maximum amount of weight you can hold. Because the focusing muscle is considered smooth muscle and does not fatigue like the striated muscles you use for your arms or legs, there is some disagreement on this point. It is really an academic point since the headaches do commonly occur, possibly due to variations in focusing and resultant clarity, constriction of the colored iris tissue, or other unknown factors. How much uncorrected farsightedness is required to cause headaches? We know higher amounts are more significant as age increases but with lower amounts it is not as clear what levels create eyestrain and headaches. Sometimes the only way to know is to fill an eyeglasses prescription and see if the headaches resolve.

Focusing problems in general are very hard to diagnose with precision. Eyes may over focus, under focus, have variable focusing, and on rare occasions have focusing spasms. Some prescription medications can cause focusing problems, dry eyes and sensitivity to light increasing the likelihood of headaches.

Uncorrected nearsightedness can cause a child to squint to see the blackboard and result in headaches. Usually they will be complaining about blurry vision, unlike with farsightedness. Nearsightedness has normally been corrected by an eye doctor due to blurry vision before there are complaints about headaches.

Astigmatism is a condition where the eye has two different curvatures, shaped more like half of a tennis ball squeezed on top and bottom. While astigmatism does blur vision, children frequently notice more eyestrain than blurriness. The eye is focusing for one curve then the other trying to find the clearest focus point. Moderate to high levels of astigmatism can cause headaches but usually the child has complaints that sound more like eyestrain and may be squinting to try and clear things up.

Convergence insufficiency is one of the leading causes of headaches related to vision in children. In our optometry practice in Fort Collins, we find it is one of the most common undiagnosed eye conditions. When your child reads or works up close the eyes have to perform two functions. First they have to adjust the focus for the correct distance. Secondly they must turn in both eyes (converge) to point in the exact direction of what they are looking at. Most reading is done at about 14 to 16 inches away from the face in children. Kids should be able to keep their eyes pointing at an object at least until it is within 4 to 6 inches from their nose. If they can’t, they lack enough reserve capacity to keep their eyes pointed at the object and they will have eyestrain and headaches. The severity of the problem is related to how well their brain functions in partially shutting down the image from one eye. If they lack this capacity the headaches can be severe with near work, resulting in headaches, eyestrain, blurred vision, and failing grades in school.

Muscle imbalances are similar to convergence insufficiency. Due to eye muscles or tendons that are slightly misshaped or inserted slightly abnormally, their eyes may have a tendency to turn in, out, up, or down. Constantly struggling to keep images from doubling can cause frequent headaches if the brain is not good at shutting off one of the images. Fixation disparities are very tiny eye alignment errors that can have a similar result but can only be diagnosed with appropriate testing.

Migraines are a very common cause of headaches and take many different forms. Usually there is a family history of migraines already known. Children that develop migraines at an older age often are carsick at younger ages. These headaches tend to be on one side of the head and may be associated with nausea and light sensitivity. Migraines need to be thoroughly tested and diagnosed in conjunction with your child’s pediatrician and possibly a neurologist. The only association migraines have with eyes are some people have migraines triggered by small changes in their eye glass prescription, and some migraines can cause very minor damage to the eyes over time.

Some children and adults are naturally very sensitive to small changes in their eyeglass or contact lens prescription. Every time there is a minor change they start having headaches, and learn quickly it is time for an appointment with the optometrist. Autistic children may have somewhat of an opposite type of  problem, and clearing up vision too much may contribute to sensory overload and headaches.

Rare causes of headaches around the eyes are tumors around the optic nerve or eye. Inflammation inside the eye that sometimes accompanies childhood arthritis and other autoimmune diseases can cause eye pain, headaches, and light sensitivity. Unusual light sensitivity, red eyes, headaches, abnormally small or large pupils, changes in behavior and school grades can be indicators of illicit drug usage, now common even in elementary schools. School counselors usually have a pretty good idea who is involved and it is a quick call.

A sinus infection can result in headaches around the eyes and in rare cases even sight loss.

Never forget lack of sleep. Fatigue, poor diet, caffeine crashes, dehydration, and stress probably cause most headaches. Preventative eye exams for children always helps rule out some easily fixed causes so don’t neglect an eye check up if your child is being afflicted with headaches.

Last, but not least is the friend who just got new glasses syndrome. All of a sudden your child develops blurry vision and headaches. Fortunately, an optometrist can diagnose this case pretty easy. Sometimes you may want to consider discussing in advance with your child’s eye doctor a placebo pair of glasses  with little or no prescription. Occasionally with a strong willed child it is easier to just let them wear a pair for six months  and spend your energy on the bigger battles.

Ten Reasons To Be More Concerned About Your Child’s Headaches

1. Headaches that are continuing to get worse or becoming more frequent

2. Headaches that occur in the same area of the eye or head

3. Headaches that wake children up at night or are present at the beginning of the day

4. Headaches accompanied by double vision, blurred vision, or abnormal eye movements

5. Headaches that cause a child to cease their normal activities

6. Any headache that occurs after a fall, possible bump to the head, or after loss of consciousness or

memory, however brief

7. Any headache that is accompanied by changes in responsiveness, sluggish thinking, slurred

speech, changes in balance, different pupil sizes, severe vomiting, droopy half open eyes, altered or

unusual behavior

8. Headaches that only occur when a specific person is around (possible abuse)

9. Headaches occurring in other people present (possible carbon monoxide poisoning)

10. Severe Headaches with very rapid onset, high fever, stiff neck

If you have concerns about your child having mild or moderate headaches, starting with appointments with your optometrist and family doctor makes sense, proceeding to a neurological evaluation if needed.

There is a new epidemic that is running rampant across the United States. Fortunately it is not contagious and not life threatening like the Swine Flu, but there is a tremendous cost in terms of loss of quality of life and vision. This epidemic is often referred to as Dry Eye Syndrome and effects millions of people with symptoms ranging from mild, vague discomfort to completely disabling pain and chronic blurred eyesight.The Dry Rye Epidemic has multiple causes.

• Time spent by adults on computers and youth on video games dramatically lowers the normal blink rate and causes the eyes to dry out faster than normal.
• Historically, before mass consumption of processed foods, for every unit of omega-3 fat we consumed in our diet we ate 1 to 4 units of omega 6. Today that ratio has shifted to 20-30 times more omega 6 fats in our diets than omega-3. This has caused an outbreak of disease of the eyelid margins and resultant poor tear film quality.
• As the population has aged there has been an increase due to normal, age related decreases in tear production.
• The large increase in prescription medication use has resulted in numerous drugs being used that contribute to dry eyes. Medications for blood pressure, depression, allergies, pain, and many other conditions can have drying effects.
• Millions of women treated with hormonal replacement therapy in the past may have increased the dry eye epidemic.
• With the shift to industrialized society, working indoors the patterns of airflow and humidity have been altered and effect the incidence of dry eyes.
• The long term shift away from water consumption towards caffeinated beverages and colas aggravates dry eyes in some individuals.
• Even the increase in obesity leads to low grade inflammation in the body which can decrease tear production.
• Many eyedrops, prescription and over the counter, can  cause or aggravate dry eyes to the point that some patients discontinue their treatment and suffer sight loss.
• Perhaps the worse culprit in the dry eye epidemic is LASIK eye surgery. The nerves that drive the eyes to blink are cut by the surgery and dryness is a frequent complaint after surgery. The dryness sometimes persists and requires long term treatment.

Fortunately we have many options today, including prescription eye  medications, new contact lens materials, glaucoma  eye drops designed for dry eyes, nutritional supplements, and even  micro-plugs implants for the tear ducts to help increase the basal level of moisture. If you feel you have symptoms of dry eyes please call and request an appointment for a dry eye evaluation. Your vision insurance service plan may provide coverage for dry eye treatment.

Symptoms could be any of the following:

1. Burning or stinging if the eyes
2. Eyes that intermittently water excessivley
3. Eye that feel griity at times
4. Vision that blurs up for brief periods of time
5. Pink or red eyes
6. Vision discomfort that gets worse as the day progresses
7. Developing intolerance to contact lenses
8. An increase in the normal level of itchy eye allergies
9. Frequent styes and eye infections

CALL: 970-226-0959

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Fort Collins is a different environment for contact lenses than many other parts of the country. The low humidity, Chinook winds, and wide variation in  weather make it a more challenging environment for optometrists to find the perfect fit for you or your children. By utilizing special contact lens materials better suited for the Ft Collins Eye Environment, we can serve as your eye doctor in solving problems. Our eye doctors practice also utilizes special contact lens solutions, nutritional interventions, and prescription eye drops when needed to help you obtain the comfortable contact lens wear you need in Northern Colorado.

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Fort Collins Eye Doctors