When Dr. Garrett completed our state-of-the-art medical and surgical eye care facility a few years ago, he decided to add a mission statement to our name: Clear Vision For A Lifetime. This expresses our desire to partner with our patients in designing a plan for their vision care and eye health for their entire life. Many eye care practices focus on episodic care in which they cater to a single procedure or patient type. At Virginia Beach Eye Center, we prefer to build a long-term relationship with our patients, which allows us to choose the appropriate procedure or vision care solution for you now, while keeping your options open for your visual needs into the future.

Nearly half of us are born with imperfect visual systems which are termed "refractive errors." These are nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism. These vision problems become noticeable at different ages and depending on the amount, can cause poor vision at distance, near, or both. These imperfections can be corrected by glasses, contact lens or refractive surgery.

The Aging Eye
Just as our physical strength diminishes with age, our eyes also exhibit age related decline in performance. Presbyopia and cataracts are two common conditions of aging eyes. Sometime around age 40 the focusing lens inside the eye has enlarged and hardened (so called cataract lens changes) enough that it can no longer focus adequately for reading, a condition called presbyopia. This is when most people must get reading glasses or bifocals or consider either monovision or multifocal contact lenses. Patients who want to reduce or eliminate their dependence on glasses and contacts can choose the NuSite Advanced Surface Ablation™ procedure with monovision or refractive lens exchange surgery with monovision, multifocal or Crystalens AO™ implants.

Many issues must be considered when deciding which vision correcting treatment is right for you. These include: Is your refractive error stable? Have you developed presbyopia? Do you have enough cataract to affect your outcome? What is the amount of your refractive error? Is your cornea thick enough to allow safe surgery? Are there other eye problems, systemic condition or medications that could affect surgery? Click here to find out which procedure is right for you.

As you can see, a lot goes into the decision-making process, not least of which is making a plan for your vision, not just for today, but for your whole lifetime!! This is where our doctors at Virginia Beach Eye Center really shine, recommending a vision correction solution with your unique situation in mind.

What You Can Do About Age-Related Vision Changes
We can't stop the natural process of aging, but we can take steps to minimize or forestall its affects on our eyes First and foremost, a healthy diet and wise lifestyle choices (i.e. don't smoke,wear sunglasses) are your best natural defense against vision loss as you age.

In addition to taking care of your general health and well-being, annual eye exams are important as we grow older, because they can identify and treat eye disease at an early stage, before it can do permanent damage to your vision. Serious age-related eye conditions have the potential to adversely affect your quality of life and may even cause blindness if not treated.