Lehigh Valley Center For Sight

Coronavirus (COVID-19) can cause mild to severe respiratory illness . Symptoms such as fever, cough, shortness of breath and pink eye can show up 2 to 14 days after a person is exposed. People with severe infections can develop pneumonia and even die from complications of the illness. To cut your personal risk of contracting the COVID-19, avoid touching your eyes, nose, mouth and face with unwashed hands. It is the mucous membranes (membranes that line various cavities in the body) that are most susceptible to transmission of the virus. To avoid infecting others with the coronavirus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended the use of face masks to be worn when out in public. Face masks can reduce the spread of coronavirus by people who are infected but have no symptoms of the virus (asymptomatic). Face masks, however, do not protect your eyes from infection. Here are a few tips on how to protect yourself and others: 1. Practice safe hygiene and soci...

As America’s population ages overall, the number of people with eye conditions and disease will increase. Currently the number of us dealing with vision problems is already staggering. If you’re coping with vision problems, you’re not alone. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology , Nearly 1.3 million Americans forty and older are legally blind. About 8% of men and 0.5% of women with Northern European ancestry have the most common form of color blindness. The incidence is lower in almost all other populations. Cataracts impact more than 24.4 million Americans age forty and older, almost twice the number of people living in Pennsylvania. About half of all Americans will have cataracts by the time they reach 75. Glaucoma affects more than 2.7 million Americans age forty and older. Each year about 2.4 million eye injuries happen in the US. Use of protective eyewear can prevent 90% of eye injuries. More than a third of all such injuries happen to those 18 to 45 ...