EYE HEALTH
Learn more about your eyes
DIGITAL RETINAL SCREENING
Advantages of Digital Retinal Screening
1. Images of your retinal screening are available immediately, allowing for a quick diagnosis. You will be able to work with us to find appropriate management for your specific case.
2. We can enhance the images with our sophisticated software, highlighting any problem areas. This will help with overall diagnostic decisions we will make.
3. You are able to make a more informed decision at the time of your screening with the images readily available. Our specialized software can help your family members understand in what way your vision is affected and how you see your world.
4. We can prepare digital photographs and send them electronically to a co-managing doctor if needed. This allows for more timely diagnosis and treatment.
5. Your digital photographs can also be collected and placed in your permanent clinical record. This will allow us to more closely monitor even the smallest progression of any abnormalities.
Who Should Consider a Digital Retinal Screening?
Diabetic Patients
Diabetic patients are at a high risk for developing a variety of eye diseases from cataracts to diabetic retinopathy which is one of the leading causes of blindness. Early detection and quick treatment are important to preventing vision loss. It is vital that diabetic patients have regular photographs taken of their eyes. Retinal screening can allow us to diagnose diabetic eye diseases and check progression. It is also not unlikely that diabetes is first discovered as a result of retinal screening.
Glaucoma Patients
Glaucoma causes progressive damage to the optic nerve. This nerve carries visual messages to the brain and when glaucoma strikes it can result in gradual vision loss in the peripheral or side portion of your visual field. Most people show no symptoms or warning signs until the disease has advanced too far for repair. However with retinal screenings, it can help you detect glaucoma earlier by noting any changes in your optic nerve.
Patients with Macular Degeneration
Age-related Macular Degeneration, or AMD, can breakdown the part of the retina that provides you with sharp, central vision. Although a majority of people with macular degeneration have the dry form of the disease, if not detected early it can eventually progress into the wet form which can cause severe vision loss in the centre of your visual field and bleeding of the eyes. AMD patients can benefit from regular retinal photographs, allowing us to monitor your diseases’ progression.
Healthy Patients
For adults and children with healthy eyes, regular retinal screenings can be beneficial. Understanding your eye when it is healthy can be the best way to detect a disease when it appears. We can compare your healthy photographs with future photos in order to diagnose any issues or changes.
Patients with Other Retinal Diseases & Disorders
Any retinal disease is cause enough for regular retinal screenings. Along with the severity of your disease and the history of it in your family, the screenings will allow us to recommend the best course of treatment
LASER VISION SURGERY
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LASIK eye surgery is the most frequently performed elective surgery in North America. This highly effective outpatient procedure is often referred to as refractive surgery or laser eye surgery.
LASIK eye surgery is used to correct the following vision problems:
Myopia (Nearsightedness)
Hyperopia (Farsightedness)
Astigmatism
Custom LASIK
Custom LASIK is LASIK eye surgery at its most refined. Every eye has its imperfections. Custom LASIK utilizes new Wavefront technology that helps your surgeon customize the laser treatment to your individual eyes. The precision of custom LASIK allows for the most accurate vision correction possible.
Bladeless LASIK
Bladeless LASIK with Femtosecond laser technology is the first "all laser" LASIK procedure. Bladeless LASIK uses a gentle laser to create a precise, uniform corneal flap. As the name implies, no blades are used in this customizable eye surgery.
PRK Surgery - Photorefractive Keratectomy
PRK Surgery (Photorefractive Keratectomy) is an elective outpatient laser eye surgery procedure to improve vision and reduce or eliminate the need for eyeglasses or contact lenses. In PRK surgery, the surgeon uses the excimer laser to reshape the curvature of the eye for patients with nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism.
Prior to LASIK, PRK surgery was the most commonly performed laser vision correction procedure. PRK differs from LASIK, in that the surgeon does not create a flap. PRK surgery is best suited for patients with thinner corneas, or with vocational or sports-related limitations where a corneal flap is contraindicated.
PRK vs LASIK
The biggest difference between the two procedures is the flap. During LASIK, your surgeon will create a flap with the outer layer of tissue from your cornea, but in PRK, the outer layer tissue is removed. After that, the procedures are ultimately the same. Both procedures use a laser to reshape your cornea.
There are also some differences in the recovery of both procedures. You will feel a little more discomfort with PRK and the recovery will take a bit longer than LASIK. It will take one to three days for PRK patients to have their discomfort subside and may take up to 6 months for these patients to reach their peak clarity. In LASIK, the discomfort is short term and most patients report that they are seeing normally within hours after the procedure.
Even though there are a few differences between PRK and LASIK, the results are the same. Both procedures are safe and effective.
Benefits of PRK Laser Treatment
The major benefit of the PRK laser treatment is that it may be performed on those who do not meet the requirements for traditional LASIK surgery. Good candidates for PRK laser treatment include people with dry eyes or thin corneas.
Improvements in laser technology have allowed surgeons to achieve results with PRK laser treatment that are equivalent to those possible with LASIK, though recovery times following the surgery are typically longer.
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CATARACTS
Cataracts
Vision may deteriorate with age, disease, or injury. At TLC Laser Eye Centres, we can help restore failing vision. The latest procedures to correct vision affected by cataracts are offered to Ontario, patients by our laser eye surgery team. If you believe that you have developed a cataract, ensure you are thoroughly informed. Understand the various options available to you. Make an appointment with your ophthalmologist, optometrist or contact TLC Laser Eye Centres directly.
What is a cataract?
A cataract is a clouding of the normally clear natural lens in your eye that develops as we age into our 60s or later. Gradually, cataracts restrict enough light that we notice reduced vision. Cataract surgery has undergone an amazing transformation in recent years, leaving patients with multiple options.
TLC Laser Eye Centre through our surgeons, providespatients suffering from cataracts and other vision impairments several options for treatment.
Multifocal IOLs
What is cataract surgery?
Similar to a smudged camera lens, cataracts obstruct the clarity of a patient's vision, from cloudiness that forms on the eye's natural lens. Through a small incision, the patient's clouded lens is removed and replaced with an intraocular lens (IOL). The incision is so small that stitches are usually not required. This outpatient procedure usually takes 15 minutes or less.
Modern cataract surgery has benefitted greatly from advances in lens implants, including lenses that correct astigmatism and other visual aberrations, and multifocal lenses that correct for both far and near.
Cataract surgery can be a double blessing for those taking advantage of this new technology: clearing away the cataract and correcting the vision at the same time.
Signs and symptoms of cataracts:
Cloudy or blurred vision
Difficulty seeing at night
Seeing halos around lights
Problems with glare
Seeing double or multiple images in an eye with a cataract