Dual topics of interest to your vision will be the subject of next Tuesday’s installment of our annual Medical Lecture Series.

The lecture, which will take place from 5 to 6 p.m. in the Cultural Center Theatre, will be presented by the University of Miami Health System’s Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, which has been named the nation’s best eye hospital for the past 14 years by U.S. News and World Report magazine.

 

What should you do when you hear that comment, “You look really tired,” and you look in the mirror and think, “ No, I look really old!” Bascom Palmer Oculofacial Plastic Surgeon Sara Wester, M.D., will give us the latest news about aging eyelids and non-surgical/surgical options like blepharoplasty in Hollywood, FL that can help us look fresher and see more clearly. Drooping eyelids are not just an unwanted aging development — they also account for various vision limitations.

 

Dr. Sander Dubovy, Professor of Ophthalmology and Pathology at Bascom Palmer, will discuss the diagnosis of AMD and the various treatment options that are available for this common eye condition that is a leading cause of vision loss in people 50 and older.

According to the National Eye Institute, AMD “causes damage to the macula, a small spot near the center of the retina and the part of the eye needed for sharp, central vision, which lets us see objects that are straight ahead. In some people, AMD advances so slowly that vision loss does not occur for a long time. In others, the disease progresses faster and may lead to a loss of vision in one or both eyes. As AMD progresses, a blurred area near the center of vision is a common symptom. Over time, the blurred area may grow larger or you may develop blank spots in your central vision. Objects also may not appear to be as bright as they used to be.”

Dr. Dubovy is director of the Florida Lions Ocular Pathology Laboratory, which is one of just 10 dedicated eye pathology labs in the country. Its parent organization, the Florida Lions Eye Bank, has worked for 50 years to recover, process and distribute ocular tissue for patients in South Florida and beyond. The Eye Bank has provided more than 45,000 corneas for transplantation, more than 35,000 pieces of sclera or cornea for glaucoma procedures and other ocular procedures, and more than 30,000 eyes for research and/or teaching purposes.

Dr. Dubovy also holds the prestigious Victor T. Curtin Chair in Ophthalmology.

After the lecture you will have the opportunity to meet both doctors and enjoy light refreshments. The Healthnetwork Foundation of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, has generously sponsored this lecture.Mark your calendar for Feb. 13’s lecture on “Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases.” For more information about this lecture and the entire 2018 series, click here.