FLORIDA AND GEORGIA SUMMER HEAT UP. UV RAYS CAN PUT YOUR EYES AT RISK. THE WORLD HEALTH
ORGANIZATION ESTIMATES 20% OF
CATARACTS ACROSS THE WORLD MAY
BE CAUSED BY OVEREXPOSURE TO
UV RADIATION. AND AS WE
RECOGNIZE NATIONAL CATARACT
AWARENESS MONTH, JACKSONVILLE
OF TRUSTED DOCTOR KIMBERLY
RIORDAN WITH FLORIDA EYE
SPECIALISTS JOINS US TO TALK
ABOUT LOWERING YOUR RISK. GOOD
MORNING TO YOU.
>> GOOD MORNING. THANK YOU FOR
HAVING ME. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY.
THANKS FOR COMING ON. SO
LISTEN, WE ARE OUT AND ABOUT
WE’VE GOT THOSE LONG DAYS. THE
SUN IS UP EARLY AND SETS
REALLY LATES. THAT MEANS A LOT
OF EXPOSURE TO SUNSHINE. LET’S
TALK ABOUT UV RAYS AND HOW
THEY AFFECT OUR EYES.
>> ABSOLUTELY. THE UV, A
STRONG AS WE KNOW HERE IN
FLORIDA AND WE’RE JUMPING IN
THE SUMMER MONTHS. ACTUALLY, I
MODEL HERE TO HELP DEMONSTRATE
WHAT I’M TRYING TO TALK ABOUT.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE WANT
TO PROTECT THE EYES WITH THEIR
SUNGLASSES, EASY TO PUT THOSE
ON. AND THERE’S MANY REASONS
THAT SUNLIGHT CAN PENETRATE
FROM THE FRONT OF THE EYE ALL
THE WAY TO THE BACK OF THE
EYE. SO THE FIRST THING WE
THINK OF OUR OUR EYE LIDS, SO
SKIN CANCER IS VERY COMMON THE
ISLAND AND IT’S HARD
APPROPRIATELY PUT SUNSCREEN IN
THAT AREA. WE CAN’T GET ALL
THE WAY UP TO THE EYELASHES.
SO THAT’S THE KIND OF PLACE
WHERE CAN GET SKIN CANCER.
SORRY. ANOTHER PLACE THAT WE
WORRY ABOUT IS THE FRONT
SURFACE OF THE EYE. SO YOU SEE
THE WHITE COVERING THAT’S
CLEAR IS COVERED BY COUNTING
AND THAT TISSUE CAN BE
AFFECTED BY UV RAYS. MOST
SPECIFICALLY UVB IS WHAT WE
WORRY ABOUT DAMAGED TISSUE THE
FRONT OF THE EYE THAT COULD
GENERATING COSTLY CALLED KING
AND THOSE CAN GROW OVER THE
CORNEA HERE THAT WE’RE
COVERING IN CARS, TRADE. GM’S,
THOSE ARE USUALLY BENIGN.
HOWEVER, WE WORRY ABOUT CANCER
DEVELOPING ON THE FRONT OF THE
EYE AS WELL. SO IF YOU’RE
NOTICING A NEW SPOT ON THE
SURFACE OF THE EYELID WHERE
THE EYE ALL MAKE SURE YOU CALL
YOUR DOCTOR, CALL FLORIDA EYE
SPECIALISTS WERE HAPPY TO SEE
YOU. THEN MOVING INTO THE
FRONT OF THE EYE. WE WORRY
ABOUT CATARACTS FORMING THE
EYE IS LIKE A CAMERA HAS A
LENS AND THAT LENS CAN GET
CLOUDY OVERTIME. UV EXPOSURE
ACCELERATES THE RATE OF THE
CATARACT GROWS AND YOU CAN
EVEN PENETRATE ALL THE WAY TO
THE BACK OF THE EYE TO THE
RETINA, WHICH IS LIKE THE TAPE
AROUND THE INNER PART OF THE
EYE. AND WE WORRY ABOUT THINGS
LIKE MACULAR DEGENERATION.
ABSOLUTELY A BIG CONCERN
THERE. SO LET’S GET TO THE
BASICS. WHAT ARE THE SIGNS OF
A CATARACT?
>> SO, CAROL, MANY SIGNS, MOST
PEOPLE EXPERIENCE LURIE ARE
CLOUDY VISION. THEY MAY NOTICE
DOUBLE VISION OUT OF ONE EYE.
THEY MAY NOTICE THAT COLORS
AREN’T AS DISTINCT AS THEY
USED TO BE OR THEY START TO
NOTICE. HEY, I’M CHANGING MY
CLASSES ARE MY CONTACT LENS
PRESCRIPTION AND ALSO LOT MORE
THAN I USED TO. OKAY. SO.
>>VIC MICOLUCCI: YOU KNOW, WE
HEAR ABOUT CATARACTS AND OLDER
PEOPLE. WHAT ABOUT YOUNGER
PEOPLE? CHILDREN, TEENAGERS,
YOUNG ADULTS.
>> ABSOLUTELY. SO WHEN WE
THINK OF CATARACTS, OFTENTIMES
WE THINK IT’S JUST OLDER
ADULTS, WHICH IS TRUE. WE DO
SEE IT MORE COMMONLY IN THOSE
65 YEARS AND OLDER. WE CAN BE
BORN WITH THEM IN WHICH WE
TURN THOSE CONGENITAL
CATARACTS AND WE CAN DEVELOP
THEM AT ANY POINT IN OUR LIFE
FOR VARIOUS REASONS. THE TOP 3
MOST COMMON REASONS, OUR
TRAUMA, WE CAN DEVELOP
TRAUMATIC CATARACTS WERE HIT
IN THE EYE. WE CAN DEVELOP
THEM FROM CERTAIN MEDICATIONS
AS DRUG CLASS OF CORTICAL
STEROIDS, WHICH ARE KNOWN TO
CREATE MORE OF AN AGGRESSIVE
TYPE OF CATARACT THAT CAN GROW
MORE QUICKLY THAN AGE RELATED
ONE AND THEN UNDERLYING HEALTH
CONDITIONS SUCH AS DIABETES OR
HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE.
>>VIC MICOLUCCI: ALL RIGHT.
LET’S GET TO WHAT’S PROBABLY
THE MOST IMPORTANT PART. WHAT
ARE THE SIMPLE THINGS THAT WE
CAN DO TO PROTECT OUR EYES?
BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, NO OFFENSE,
BUT WE DON’T WANT TO GO
THROUGH LONG TREATMENTS, YOU
KNOW, WITH WITH OUR EYE
DOCTORS, WE WANT TO, YOU KNOW,
PREVENT THIS BEFORE IT GETS
OUT OF HAND. WHAT DO WE NEED
TO DO IT?
>> TENSION IS KEY SUNGLASSES,
SPECIALLY WRAPAROUND
SUNGLASSES BECAUSE LIGHT CAN
STILL CREEP IN AN ANGLE. SO
ALSO WHERE WIDE-BRIMMED HATS.
MAKE SURE YOU WEAR YOUR
SUNSCREEN AS WELL. AND IF
YOU’RE GOING SWIMMING, MAKE
SURE YOU HAVE YOUR GOGGLES.
>>VIC MICOLUCCI: ALL RIGHT.
ABSOLUTELY. SO VERY IMPORTANT
THINGS THERE, ESPECIALLY FOR
US DOWN HERE IN FLORIDA AND
GEORGIA. WE’RE WE’RE JUST OUT
AND ABOUT WE’RE ENJOYING IT.
WHETHER YOU’RE AT THE POOL OR
THE LAKE, THE RIVER, THE
BEACH, THERE IS SUN ALL AROUND
PROTECT YOURSELF. DOCTOR