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Blog Archive

Kids and Eye Safety in Youth Sports Apr 27th, 2026

Children are particularly vulnerable to sports eye injuries because their reflexes and coordination are still developing. Parents can reduce risk by ensuring children: Wear protective eyewear during high-risk sports• Use helmets with face shields when appropriate• Avoid playing sports with regular glasses Encouraging safe habits early helps protect vision for...

Signs of a Serious Eye Injury During Sports Apr 20th, 2026

Sometimes athletes try to “tough it out” after an injury, but certain symptoms require immediate medical attention. Watch for: Double vision• Loss of peripheral vision• Flashes or floaters• Severe pain or swelling• Blood inside the eye These symptoms could indicate retinal damage or internal bleeding. Prompt evaluation by an ophthalmologist...

Why Athletes Should Wear Protective Eyewear Apr 13th, 2026

Protective sports goggles made with polycarbonate lenses are designed to withstand high-impact collisions. These lenses are: Lightweight• Highly impact-resistant• Safer than standard glasses Athletes who wear prescription glasses should consider sports-specific prescription goggles to maintain clear vision while protecting their eyes. At Wagner Kapoor Institute, we often remind patients that...

The Most Common Sports Eye Injuries Apr 6th, 2026

Sports-related eye injuries affect thousands of athletes each year, especially children and teenagers. Common injuries include: Corneal abrasions (scratches)• Blunt trauma from balls or elbows• Retinal tears or detachment• Fractures around the eye socket Sports with the highest risk include: Baseball and softball• Basketball• Racquet sports• Hockey• Paintball Many injuries...

Keep Your Head in the Game, And Your Eyes Safe Apr 1st, 2026

Spring brings sunshine, warmer weather, and for many of us, a return to sports and outdoor activities. Whether you’re coaching your child’s baseball team, hitting the pickleball courts, or heading out for a bike ride, April is the perfect time to focus on something that’s often overlooked: sports eye safety....

Eye Safety in High-Risk Environments: Lessons from Crowd Control Injuries Mar 30th, 2026

During Workplace Eye Wellness Month, we often focus on protecting vision in offices, construction sites, and industrial settings. But eye injuries can occur anywhere people are exposed to projectiles, chemicals, or airborne irritants—including large public gatherings and protests. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, crowd-control tools such as rubber...

Do You Need Safety Glasses at Work? Mar 23rd, 2026

Every year, thousands of eye injuries occur in workplaces across the United States. The good news is that most of these injuries are preventable. Workers in fields such as construction, manufacturing, landscaping, aviation, and laboratory environments face increased risk of eye injuries from: Flying debris• Chemical splashes• Dust and particles•...

Digital Eye Strain: The Hidden Workplace Vision Problem Mar 17th, 2026

Many people assume workplace eye injuries only happen in industrial jobs, but one of the most common issues ophthalmologists see today is digital eye strain.   How Poor Lighting at Work Affects Your Eyes Lighting plays a major role in eye comfort and productivity. Poor lighting conditions can lead to...

Protecting Your Vision at Work: Simple Steps That Make a Big Difference Mar 2nd, 2026

Whether you spend your day on a construction site or behind a computer screen, your work environment plays a major role in your eye health. March is Workplace Eye Wellness Month, and it's the perfect time to evaluate how your job could be affecting your vision. At Wagner Kapoor Institute,...

Seeing Beyond the Diagnosis: Living Better with Low Vision Feb 4th, 2026

When people hear the words “low vision,” many assume it means total blindness, but that’s far from the truth. As an ophthalmologist, I often meet patients who are navigating vision loss with confusion, frustration, and fear. Low vision refers to a degree of visual impairment that cannot be fully corrected...

Don’t Let Glaucoma Steal Your Sight: What You Need to Know Jan 5th, 2026

A Personal Message from Dr. Bernstein As a glaucoma specialist at Wagner Kapoor Institute, I see patients every day who are dealing with the consequences of this silent disease. The hardest part? Much of the damage was already done before they noticed anything was wrong. Glaucoma is a thief. And...

Valeda Light Delivery Therapy at WKI: Advancing Care Pathways for Dry AMD Dec 10th, 2025

Dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) continues to challenge both clinicians and patients, with limited tools available to meaningfully support retinal health in early and intermediate stages. At Wagner Kapoor Institute (WKI), we’ve introduced Valeda Light Delivery Therapy, the first FDA-cleared photobiomodulation (PBM) platform for dry AMD, to provide a proactive...

Vision Loss and Healthy Aging: What Older Adults Need to Know Oct 6th, 2025

Vision Health and Aging: Why It Matters A holistic approach to vision care in the aging population is essential to overall health and wellbeing. Preserving vision in older adults goes far beyond maintaining independence in daily activities—it is a fundamental part of basic health and safety. As a retinal specialist...

Diet Soda Linked to Increased Risk for Diabetic Retinopathy Jan 15th, 2024

Diet Soda and Diabetic Eye Disease: What Patients Should Know Drinking diet soda may be associated with a higher risk of proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR)—an advanced form of diabetic eye disease that can lead to severe vision loss—according to research published in Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology. In this study of...

Coronavirus and Your Macular Degeneration Care Jan 21st, 2021

Reviewed by: Johanna M Seddon MD, Rahul Khurana, MD If you have macular degeneration, you may feel worried about catching the coronavirus or maintaining your eye care during the pandemic. Experts at the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the American Macular Degeneration Foundation (AMDF) have assembled the following advice especially for you. This article has been adapted...

Meet the Eye Microbiome Jul 2nd, 2019

The following essay is reprinted with permission from The Conversation, an online publication covering the latest research. You may be familiar with the idea that your gut and skin are home to a collection of microbes—fungi, bacteria and viruses—that are vital for keeping you healthy. But did you know that your...

Ocular Melanoma Jul 17th, 2017

When we think of melanoma, we think primarily of melanoma affecting the skin. To be sure, cutaneous melanoma remains the most serious type of skin cancer and can be lethal if it progresses undetected. Even though cancer affecting the eye is much less common, melanoma still remains the most common...

If It’s good enough for astronauts, it must be good enough for all of us! Jul 3rd, 2017

If It’s good enough for astronauts, it must be good enough for all of us!Being able to determine how someone’s health is when that someone is far away requires knowing what to measure, how to measure it, and how to get that information where it needs to go.Our first American...

How Colon Cancer Treatment Redefined Preventable Blindness Worldwide Jul 3rd, 2017

In 2013, a group of prominent historians were surveyed and asked to compile a list of the greatest breakthroughs of all time.  While some items on the list were clearly revolutionary – such as electricity (#2) and the Internet (#9), others seemed humdrum by comparison (paper at #6!), but clearly...

Women Face Higher Risk of Blindness Than Men Apr 26th, 2017

Women Face Higher Risk of Blindness Than MenStudies show there is a gender gap in eye disease. Women are more likely than men to suffer from sight-threatening conditions such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), cataracts, and glaucoma.1 In support of Healthy Vision Month in May, Alan Wagner, M.D., F.A.C.S. and Kapil...

Diabetic Retinopathy Screening: Time to Rethink Guidelines? Mar 13th, 2017

Young people with diabetes mellitus (DM) are at considerable risk for diabetic retinopathy (DR), accord­ing to researchers who looked at the incidence and risk factors for develop­ing DR among youth with DM.1 These findings, which have implications for screening guidelines, challenge the perception that DR is very uncommon in youth.Higher-than-expected...

A Canary in the Coal Mine Oct 24th, 2016

Whether it was in England in the 1600s mining for coal, or some Stardate in the far far future, the canary signals whether or not the atmosphere is safe for the people around it. The eye, and it's fragile vasculature, plays the same role for the major organs of the...

Check Out Our New Website!!! Sep 28th, 2016

Hi!  Welcome to the new Wagner Macula & Retina Center's website! We are very excited to roll out a new formatted online experience encouraging visitors to peruse our informational webpage to your heart's content. Our new website consists of all of the great information that was included on the old...