Page 138 - South Mississippi Living - August, 2017

HEALTHY LIVING fuzzy to focused
EYE SEE
Cataracts not just for the elderly
story by Lynn Lofton photos courtesy of Dr. George Thurber and Dr. Don Benefield
George Thurber, M.D.
Don Benefield, M.D.
Among issues affecting the eyes, cataracts are fairly common, especially among those who’ve had a lot of birthdays. Typically, cataracts start to appear in adults in the fifth or sixth decade. However, age is not the only cause of this leading cause of blindness in the world; even newborns can have them. Two Coast ophthalmologists point out the other causes of cataracts.
“Cataracts form as the clear protein which makes
up the lens becomes cloudy or white. This process
is accelerated with diabetes, malnutrition, smoking, ultraviolet light exposure, trauma, radiation treatment or the use of steroids,” said
George Thurber, M.D., with the
Center for Eye Care in Biloxi.
“Fortunately, they are very
treatable.”
Don Benefield, M.D.,
with Benefield Eye Care in Gulfport, agrees and adds,
“Eye inflammation or trauma
is another cause, and because more people have diabetes now, we diagnose more patients in their 40s and 50s. It’s no longer just a disease of the elderly.”
Thurber says younger people today have higher visual requirements. “In the past, a person might
put up with issues such as glare, which impedes night driving, or poorer reading before seeking help, but today these are not tolerated, so we are taking out cataracts in younger people more often.”
Surgery isn’t always the answer. “In early cataracts, sometimes a change in glasses or the addition of an antireflective coating on glasses will result in adequate vision,” Thurber said. “Beyond a certain point, however, only a surgical cataract extraction with an
intraocular lens implant will reestablish adequate vision.”
Benefield explains that surgery has improved. “We do advanced, refractive cataract surgery. There is
no shot, stitch, patch or bruise,” he said. “We fix
the astigmatism and other aberrations so patients can see better without glasses with a quick recovery. You can be back on the golf course or fishing in a day or two. We can offer advanced intraocular lenses that can correct astigmatism and provide near, computer,
and distant vision all at
once for those people who are candidates and have otherwise healthy eyes.”
But, he cautions that it’s still surgery. “So it’s not perfect, but it enhances the lives of many as we help create visual freedom. Our postoperative cataract patients give me and my staff as much joy as we give them!”
There are measures to help protect our eyes from cataracts. “Don’t smoke. Control your blood sugar. Wear UV eye protection. Avoid eye injury. And try
to get adequate nutrition, including a multivitamin,” Thurber said.
138 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • August 2017
FOR MORE REFLECTIONS OF THE GULF COAST >> www.smliving.net