Buying Tips for Eye Safe Toys this Holiday Season

We wanted to share some tips for buying “eye safe” toys as you make your list for this holiday season. Certainly the kids and the toy manufacturers know what is popular, but often they are unaware of potential safety issues-especially eye safety issues. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, there are typically more than 250,000 toy-related injuries treated in U.S. emergency rooms in annually with more than 75% affecting children under 15 years of age. A serious eye injury from a toy can ruin a family's holiday and, more seriously leave a child with permanent vision loss.

Top Five Tips for Choosing Eye Safe Toys

1.     Avoid purchasing toys with sharp, protruding or projectile parts.

2.     Make sure children have appropriate supervision when playing with potentially hazardous toys or games that could cause injury.

3.     If you plan to give sports equipment, provide appropriate protective eyewear with polycarbonate lenses. Check with your eye doctor to learn about protective eyewear recommended for your child's sport.

4.     Check labels for age recommendations and be sure to select gifts that are appropriate for a child's age and maturity.

5.     Keep toys that are made for older children away from younger children.

We wish you a happy holiday season. If you need help with guidance on toys or protective eyewear for children, please call D’Ambrosio Eye Care at 800-325-3937, visit D’Ambrosio Eye Care, or facebook.com/dambrosioeyecare so that we can help.

D'Ambrosio Eye Care provides eye care for patients throughout greater Boston, central and western Massachusetts with office locations at 479 Old Union Turnpike, Lancaster, Massachusetts 01523, 865 Merriam Avenue, Suite 119, Leominster, Massachusetts 01453, 100 Powder Mill Road, Acton, Massachusetts 01720, 413 Main Street, Athol, Massachusetts 01331, 74 Main Street, Gardner, Massachusetts 01440 and 255 Park Avenue, Suite 606, Worcester, MA 01609.

Stacey’s LASIK Experience

“My contacts were getting expensive and I would forget to take them out a night and would wake up with dry, itchy eyes.  Glasses were a nuisance and I didn’t like the way they looked or felt. I play sports and work out a lot and glasses were inconvenient. I was a bit nervous before the surgery, but felt like the procedure would be safe and effective.  My questions were answered from the procedure questions to financing options.  I had heard nothing but positive comments from friends who had been treated by Dr. D’Ambrosio so felt very comfortable.  Dr. D’Ambrosio explained everything to me during the procedure at each step and what to expect.  I was pleasantly surprised at the quick pace of the surgery.  I felt no pain and was able to get right up and walk to the examination room when we had finished.  At home, I was a little sleep but very excited as I could actually see better than I had without my glasses previously.  I would highly recommend the LASIK doctors at D’Ambrosio Eye Care if you are considering LASIK surgery.”-Stacey

If you or some you know is tired of the hassle of glasses or contact lenses for seeing at distance and would like to find out if LASIK might be a good vision correction option, please call D’Ambrosio Eye Care at 800-325-3937, visit D’Ambrosio Eye Care, Google+ or facebook.com/dambrosioeyecare so that we can help.

D'Ambrosio Eye Care provides eye care for patients throughout greater Boston, central and western Massachusetts with office locations at 479 Old Union Turnpike, Lancaster, Massachusetts 01523, 865 Merriam Avenue, Suite 119, Leominster, Massachusetts 01453, 100 Powder Mill Road, Acton, Massachusetts 01720, 413 Main Street, Athol, Massachusetts 01331, 74 Main Street, Gardner, Massachusetts 01440 and 255 Park Street, Suite 606, Worcester, MA 01609.

Eye Photos for High Blood Pressure

Eye photos for high blood pressure? Why? When you visit us for your comprehensive eye exam we will perform a very careful examination of the inside of your eye so that we can study the health of the blood vessels and the retina itself, as this is an indication of your overall blood vessel health. Your primary care doctor will also take the time to do a more cursory examination of the retina and blood vessels-especially if you have diabetes or high blood pressure. Recently, a phone based app was developed to help emergency room physicians quickly evaluate the retina and photograph it to help make quicker and more accurate diagnoses of high blood pressure related emergencies. Sometimes high blood pressure can result of narrowing of the retinal blood vessels, blockage of blood vessels and even bleeding or hemorrhages. If you have high blood pressure that causes changes in your retinal blood vessels we may even ask to photograph your when you have an eye exam.

If you or someone you know has high blood pressure it is important to have regular eye exams at the recommended times you doctor requests. Please schedule an eye exam. Please call D’Ambrosio Eye Care at 800-325-3937, visit D’Ambrosio Eye Care, Google+ or facebook.com/dambrosioeyecare so that we can help.

D'Ambrosio Eye Care provides eye care for patients throughout greater Boston, central and western Massachusetts with office locations at 479 Old Union Turnpike, Lancaster, Massachusetts 01523, 865 Merriam Avenue, Suite 119, Leominster, Massachusetts 01453, 100 Powder Mill Road, Acton, Massachusetts 01720, 413 Main Street, Athol, Massachusetts 01331 and 74 Main Street, Gardner, Massachusetts 01440 or 255 Park Avenue, Suite 606, Worcester, MA 01609.

Early Detection of Juvenile Diabetic Retina Problems

Diabetic retinopathy is best treated and managed with early detection and diagnosis. This can be especially important for children with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus. The earlier we can detect and diagnose the diabetic eye problems, the better we can prepare to help prevent vision loss. Most often diabetic retinopathy is diagnosed during a dilated exam of the retina during an eye exam. However, we also have a very sensitive non-invasive “kid friendly” imaging system in our office called Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) that can help us detect the very earliest types of changes from diabetes-even before they might be visible during a dilated retinal exam.

According to a clinical study reported in the journal Ophthalmic Surgery, Laser and Imaging Retina Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus causes and degenerative effect on certain nerve cells in the retina even before the breakdown of blood vessels occurs with diabetic retinopathy. From this research, it is thought that OCT may be more useful than just a dilated retinal exam in kids with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus.

If you or someone you know has a child or young adult with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus, please make sure they are having regular eye exams but also know that we might perform an OCT as part of their care. If you have questions or wish to schedule an appointment please call D’Ambrosio Eye Care at 800-325-3937, visit D’Ambrosio Eye Care, Google+ or facebook.com/dambrosioeyecare so that we can help.

D'Ambrosio Eye Care provides eye care for patients throughout greater Boston, central and western Massachusetts with office locations at 479 Old Union Turnpike, Lancaster, Massachusetts 01523, 865 Merriam Avenue, Suite 119, Leominster, Massachusetts 01453, 100 Powder Mill Road, Acton, Massachusetts 01720, 413 Main Street, Athol, Massachusetts 01331 and 74 Main Street, Gardner, Massachusetts 01440 and 255 Park Avenue, Suite 606, Worcester, MA 01609.

Be Thankful and BOGO

BOGO, buy one give one. Thanksgiving is the time of year most celebrate what they are thankful for, family, food, family animals, etc. and this year why not purchases a new pair of eyeglass frames included in our BOGO program. We have frames like Jimmy Choo, Gucci and Taylor Madison and when one of these frames is purchased a frame is also donated to someone in need. We donate these frames to Shared Vision International. Shared Vision provides a bridge between people in need and resources, sharing vision both locally and internationally.  We have partnered with them and each year we donate hundreds of frames, for that we thank our patients who purchase from us who help support our mission. Our BOGO program is available all year round.

Visit D’Ambrosio Optical Center to learn more about personalized fitting selection and selection of eyeglasses and digital high definition eyeglass lenses, or visit us at D’Ambrosio Optical Center, Google+ or facebook.com/dambrosioeyecare so that we can help select fashionable, comfortable and durable eyeglasses and eyewear for your entire family.

D'Ambrosio Optical Center provides personalized service fitting and selection of eyewear for patients throughout greater Boston, central and western Massachusetts with office locations at 479 Old Union Turnpike, Lancaster, Massachusetts 01523, 100 Powder Mill Road, Acton, Massachusetts 01720, 865 Merriam Avenue, Suite 119, Leominster, Massachusetts 01453, 413 Main Street, Athol, Massachusetts 01331 and 74 Main Street, Gardner, Massachusetts 01440.