This was another case of “I don’t feel like filling out forms.” Upon examining this patient’s eyes undilated, Dr. Nguyen asked her if she is hypertensive and the patient admitted to taking hypertension medication. Although not severe, there are enough signs in the eyes to suggest this patient has hypertension.

This patient came in for just an eye exam. In an attempt to make the process go quickly, he indicated he did NOT take any medications. Upon examining his eyes, something was just not right. A huge hemorrhage was found in his right eye and further questioning was warranted.

It was then revealed this patient has been diabetic for over 30 years. In his right eye (the image on the left), you can see a big red dot of blood above the optic nerve (the white dot region). More difficult to see are the other small dot hemorrhages to the right of the optic nerve and some at about 12 o’clock. In his left eye, there are signs of less fresh bleeds (bleeds in the eye behave just like bruises on the skin and as time goes by, the blood fades in color). There are signs of a bleed just above the optic nerve and at about 1 o’clock from the fovea (the dark region of the eye).

Based on this patient’s physical appearance, and because he exercises, takes his medications diligently, and his age, Dr. Nguyen is NOT making any changes to this patient’s care. In fact, he is doing fairly well for how long he has had diabetes. He currently has a low risk of debilitating vision loss. He is being told to visit again in 12 months for a dilation and retinal photos again.

It is important that when filling out patient medical history intake forms to list all medications to the best of your abilities. Contrary to popular belief, some optometry offices do indeed practice medical optometry and are concerned about systemic diseases and their implications to eye health. Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry practices medical optometry.

Note: Whenever you look at medical images, the images are (almost) always presented to you as if the patient is standing facing you. The right eye will generally be on the left.

I, Dr. Nguyen, will always be the first to admit that sometimes, I misses stuff (like the tense of miss). While looking into this patient’s eyes UNDILATED, everything looked unremarkable. But upon performing confocal scanning photography, tiny patches of pigment loss in the macular is revealed. Depending on if you can blow up the photograph, there are four whitish dots in the very dark center of this eye (the parafoveal region). Above the parafoveal region at 12, 11, and 10 o’clock are further spots in the macular of pigment loss. Although very minor at the moment, the future is hard to predict and it is possible this patient is at the very early beginnings of macular degeneration.

This patient received an eye exam five years ago and was never told anything regarding his eyes. The plan for this patient is to receive an annual fundus photo to monitor the progression of these white spots (called drusen) and a change in diet and sun and UV protection. If time reveals an increase in the number or the size or location of drusen, a more aggressive plan may be put into place. But for now, this patient is happy eating more green leafy vegetables (which he admits he avoids) and more blueberries (which he already loves). He also says he will be purchasing sunglasses.

Also, this is an aside… but have you ever noticed why there are so many macular degeneration vitamins commercials shown during football sunday? The answer is simple. The demographic for Age-Related Macular Degeneration (called ARMD or AMD) is the same demographic for viewers of American football: Caucasian males, in their 60s-80s. A large portion of this demographic also smoked cigarettes when it was popular during the 1970s and 1980s and smoking is also a risk behavior associated with AMD.

Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry is normally closed Thursdays but this Thursday will be a bit more special. We would like to give thanks to all of Morgan Hill and the surrounding areas for supporting us and trusting us with all of your eyecare needs.

Some of the tools of our trade.

MORGAN HILL EYECARE OPTOMETRY IS A FULL SERVICE OPTICAL

Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry fixes broken glasses as well as performs general routine maintenance on glasses. Bring in your frames to have the screws tightened, the dirty nosepads replaced, etc. We can also order arm pieces (called temples within the industry)

This is a tool not many opticals use. Most places will simply use their hands to bend earpieces. We’re a little more high quality than that. This tool produces a uniform bend.

We are so grateful for our patients' reviews and recommendations to their friends and families. Our fifth five star review. We are 5 for 5 in terms of 5 star reviews! And yes, our receptionist is the absolute best when it comes to finding your insurance details. We are absolutely IN-Network with VSP and you will pay much less going in-network with us than going to a VSP “partner” location. Don’t believe us? Bring in your receipt from a VSP “partner” location and we will pull up your insurance and we can tell you how much you would have saved with us.

You can read the study here.

It may look like we only have one yelp review but we actually have four. Yelp removed the other three and put them in the hidden section. Click the very bottom of the reviews and you can read the hidden reviews too. It is very frustrating that Yelp thinks those reviews are suspicious. We’re off to an amazing start and we hope everyone comes by and checks us out.

We accept MES Vision insurance. And yes, we are high tech and have access to a retinal camera. If you do not want to dilate and wish to have the back of your eyes (the retina) photographed instead, you may talk to our doctor to determine if this option is acceptable for you (not all patients should forego dilation). Optometry offices SHOULD have retinal cameras if they’re serious about your ocular health and welfare.

Also, if you have Blue Shield of California as your medical insurance, there is a good possibility that MES Vision is your independent administrator of your vision insurance benefits.

The iconic Ray•Ban™ brand has landed at Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry. These are just at any fraction of the eyeglasses and sunglasses we carry. Come in and see the entire collection. We have a bigger selection than everyone in Morgan Hill and Gilroy.

During the great PG&E Public Safety Power Shutoff, we are welcoming anyone to come in and charge your phones. We have plenty of power strips and USB plugs with a variety of wires already connected. Just plug your iPhone or Samsung (or any phone with a mini USB connector) in. We also have USB C wires for newer generation iPads. We also have free wifi.

You can read the article here.

It is the opinion of Dr. Son Nguyen that Restasis CAN be effective in a very certain patient (a very specific, patient). Being a cyclosporin (in essence, an immunomodulator), Restasis is probably best reserved for patients exhibiting signs of inflammatory dry eye disease. Given the incredible cost and ridiculous amount of insurance pre-authorization hurdles, Dr. Nguyen generally uses Restasis as a drug of last resort.

If you suffer from dry eyes and have tried other treatment options that do not work, please consider visiting Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry for treatment options often overlooked by other optometrists and ophthalmologists.

Don’t forget to visit your eye doctor if you have any contact lens problems or questions.

This is a great post about the evolution of the eye chart. The blog post includes great information about the science of psychophysics and how it pertains to eye exams.

Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry uses the latest eye chart which incorporates the newest understanding of how optotypes affect the psychophysical performance of patients. By using the WRONG eye chart, an optometrist can actually induce poor results and influence what lens choices patients may make. It is now agreed that the original Snellen chart is absolutely horrible.

Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry uses a LogMAR chart exclusively. We also use, when necessary (which is quite often), the duo chrome test for its forced-choice nature and its reliance on the laws of physics and less on the whim of the patient. Click the link below to read on…

https://ilovetypography.com/2015/07/12/what-are-optotypes-eye-charts-fonts/

Patients are loving us! She mentions that we were “willing to work with her insurance.” Actually, the truth is a bit more mundane. She called around and nobody was able to understand her insurance and several of the local offices are not IN-NETWORK with VSP. When she called us and we gathered her benefits information, our prices were lower than at the local “doc-in-the-box” franchise locations. She mistook this to mean that we pulled some strings and “worked with her insurance.” NOPE! The benefits she received at our office is simply the benefits she is contractually obligated. But yes, we did give her freebies. We will definitely take credit for that!

Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry will be getting Ray Ban™ eyeglasses and sunglasses soon. We expect them probably at the first half of September. Expect the classic designs America has come to love including the Wayfarer™, the Clubmaster ™, and the aviator models 3025 and 3044 made famous in the Top Gun movie. Come in and check them all out!

Speaking of Top Gun, this is a #throwbacktuesday photo of Dr. Son in front of an F-18C fighter jet at Naval Air Station Lemoore that he insisted he be allowed to fly but was overruled by three commanders and one admiral. Dr. Son’s time providing eye exams to Navy officers and corpsmen and corpswomen will always be a formative experience that he will cherish for the rest of his life.

Naval Air Station Lemoore has an air show open to the public September 21 and 22, 2019.

I know Dr. Ike Ahmed might look like a caveman, but he is actually incredibly well versed in glaucoma detection and management.

In this talk, he discusses why the Centervue Compass is better than other visual field perimeters.

Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry will begin taking Medicare and MediCAL (California’s version of MedicAID) soon. We hope for final approval in August and expect to start seeing Medicare and MediCAL patients in late August or early September. Morgan Hill Eyecare Optometry will be one of only two optometry practices in Morgan Hill that will accept Medicare/MediCAL.

If you have Medicare or MediCAL, please see approved Medicare/MediCAL offices. Many practices will offer “cash rebates” or “discounts” to entice Medicare/MediCAL patients. These practices are not approved by CMS and do not offer medical exams which is often necessary for the aging population.

Offices approved by CMS must meet quality and technology standards many offices can not match. All CMS offices must be able to screen, detect, and manage diseases such as glaucoma and macular degeneration and therefore must have equipment such as automated perimeters, retinal cameras, etc.

Our office is state of the art, is hypoallergenic, and uses the latest examination techniques. Our exams are performed with the lights on (how most humans use their eyes at work, play, driving their car, at school, etc). If you’re still going to an office that uses equipment from the 1960s and still does an exam in the dark, then you need to visit us.