Retinal Detachments

Retinal detachments, while rare (affects about one in every 15,000 people), are very dangerous and can cause blindness in a matter of days. While usually spontaneous, people who are very nearsighted or have had previous eye injuries or surgeries are more susceptible to retinal detachments.
There are three main types of detachments: exudative, tractional, and rhegmatogenous. Exudative retinal detachments are caused by fluid leakage underneath the retina, usually from a tumor, birth defect, or inflammatory disease. Tractional retinal detachments are caused by pulling on the retina from within, usually from scar tissue. Rhegmatogenous retinal detachments occur because fluid within the eye enters a hole or tear and causes the retina to separate from the inner wall of the eyeball.
When the retina is getting tugged on, you can often see a flash of light. Depending on how hard the tug and how often, the light flashes can vary in intensity and frequency. If the traction is successful in creating a hole or tear, you can often see a "floater" or even a shower of "floaters" in your vision. "Floaters" look like spots or strings in your vision and can vary in size, shape, and opacity. Once a hole or tear is formed, there is a passageway for fluid to enter it. As fluid enters and the retina separates from the wall of the eyeball, you will lose vision in that area. Depending on how much fluid enters, you may notice either extreme darkness or a subtle change in your peripheral vision. It is often described as a "cloud" or "curtain/veil" that starts to form in your peripheral vision and usually spreads towards your central vision.  This vision loss is painless. 
The best way to check for a retinal detachment if you have any symptoms is to get a thorough eye exam with dilation right away. The best way to prevent a retinal detachment is to get regular eye examinations with dilation to check for any holes or tears before they allow fluid to enter. The earlier a hole/tear/detachment can be detected, the more likely it can be repaired simply with laser or freezing therapy rather than a complicated scleral buckle procedure or a vitrectomy.

Spring Cleaning

We've decided to move our "New Arrivals" and other features previously highlighted in this blog to our facebook page. Visit us at www.facebook.com/CypressTSO to become a fan. We'll be giving away a pair of BCBG or Cole Haan sunglasses to one lucky fan a week for the next 6 weeks, so go "like" the TSO Cypress facebook page today!

On that note, we've decided to dedicate the blog more to issues that I often get asked during examinations and interesting cases. If you have a topic that you would like addressed in this blog, please submit them. Our next topic will be retinal detachments.

Happy St. Patty's Day!

The TSO Cypress family wishes everyone the luck of the irish today!

Winners, Winners!

Congratulations to the last round of winners in our rodeo ticket give-away!  Please come by the office to pick up your tickets and have a great time!

Kid Rock - Devon Sowell and Michelle Bledsoe
Kiss - Matt Routh
Miranda Lambert - Tyler Currie and Caitlyn Barrow
Zac Brown Band - Terry Oliver
Alan Jackson - Sabrina McClure
Brad Paisley - Mike and Janyce Kerns
Jason Aldean - Kay Doebler

Find us on Facebook!

Visit us at www.facebook.com/CypressTSO and Like us to get the latest information about what's going on at your local Texas State Optical

Winners!

Congratulations to the following winners of this week's Rodeo tickets!

Keith Urban: kendall Womack, Evelyn Hernandez, Jenny Wu
Martina McBride: Nadia Beltran, Mary Welch
Rascal Flatts: Cindy Combs, Leana Karkour
Lady Antebellum: Gaynell Van Lue, Alina Kennedy
Gary Allen: Brian Horak, Cheyenne Youd
La Arrolladora Banda El Limon/LaLeyenda: Alberta Martinez, Gerardo Gomez

One more week left, come in to sign up for a chance to win tickets to: Kid Rock, KISS, Miranda Lambert, Zac Brown Band, Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley, or Jason Aldean!

New Arrivals

Our optical boutique has brought in two new lines.  Columbia is a brand that has "focused on making the outdoors more enjoyable for everyone, and on getting more people out the door!"  If you're going for a casual sporty look, in a durable frame, these glasses are for you.  If you are more inclined towards chic, sophisticated sensibility, then Theory is the line for you.  Come into the office to try them on!

        

Winners!

Congratulations to the following winners of our Rodeo Raffle!  Please call our office at 281-758-0008 or come by to pick up your tickets. 

Clay Walker: Kathy Pruitt and Sergio Fonseca
Trace Adkins: Jaime Grimberg and Paul Lockett
Sugarland: Gina Butler and Eryn Guerrero
Janet Jackson: Marion Glenn and Yvette Nelson
Billy Currington: Jennifer and Chris Elizondo
Selena Gomez: Barbara and Olivia Castillo

Another round of winners will be announced next week!

Yee-Haw!

Dust off your cowboy boots, it's that time of year again when the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo rolls into town!  The Doctors of Texas State Optical contribute to a four year, $16,000 scholarship for our area youth in our committment to community service and involvement.  When you trust us with your eye care, you are directly contributing to these funds.  As an appreciation, we are raffling off tickets to this year's entertainment line-up.  Just stop by our office to sign up!  And visit this blog every week to check if you are a winner.

New Arrivals

Adorable new styles for youth from Juicy Couture and Guess.  Your little princess will love them!

   

   

   

visit cypress.tso.com for more information on our office

Weather/Electricity updates

Friday, 9:00am update:  Due to road closures and unsafe driving conditions, we have pushed back opening today until noon.  Please call 281-758-0081 with any questions.

Thursday, 6:30pm update:  Due to possible inclement weather, we have closed early today @ 6:30pm and will open later tomorrow Friday, Feb 4th @ 10:30am

Thursday, 10:30am update:  The transformer has been repaired and the office appears to be fully functional.  We are open for regular business.   We hope you all stay warm and drive safe out there!

3:00 PM update:  Power has been on consistently for 2+ hours now, but there is a blown transformer that supplies our building.  Unfortunately, that means that half of the office is still without power and we will be unable to provide eye exams until Centerpoint Energy comes to fix it.  Even more unfortunate is that the Centerpoint phone lines are busy and we haven't been able to report the damaged transformer.

Wed, Feb 2, 2011 @ 11:27am.  We finally have power back up again, but don't know for how long.  It's gone out twice this morning for an hour each time, but when power returns, it is only partial.  Please excuse the inconvenience, but we have cancelled all appointments for today.   Please call our office at 281-758-0008 if you have any questions.  If power is up, we will answer or you will get the machine.  If there is no answer, chances are that we have lost power again.
As of right now, we still plan on having a regular clinic tomorrow, Thursday, Feb 3,2011

Nintendo Warning about 3D handheld games

Since the Wall Street Journal article released in December, we've gotten quite a few inquiries about why there is and what the implications are about the following warning:
"Watching 3-D images for an extended time could result in adverse effect on eyesight development in the case of children 6 years old and under, therefore we highly recommend a switch to 2-D display."

As with many warning labels, we're sure Nintendo is being overly cautious to warn against the unknown.  While there are no studies available on the adverse effects of 3D media on vision development, there are studies that have shown that adult-level stereoscopic development occurs by age 6.  Hence, the Nintendo warning cautions use by those under 6 years old who are still developing their visual systems.  Since we are unsure about how stereoscopic development may be affected by 3D media, it is prudent to limit exposure to such devices.  But more importantly, it is best to limit usage of any handheld device.  Dr. Mary McMains of the Vision Learning Center of Champions recommends that "a good rule of thumb is for every 15 minutes of using digital media, you should spend 30 minutes doing some sort of gross movement activity, preferably outdoors."

Any further questions can be directed to the office TSO Cypress at 281.758.008