Prevent Blindness America (PBA) has declared June as Cataract Awareness Month in an effort to educate the public on the risk factors, symptoms, and treatment options of the world’s leading cause of blindness.

According to PBA, there are more cases of cataract globally than there are of glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy combined. Today, cataract affects more than 22 million Americans aged 40 and older. As the U.S. population ages, more than 30.1 million Americans are projected to have cataracts by the year 2020.
Risk factors for developing cataract include a family history of cataract, diabetes, smoking, extended exposure to UV rays, serious eye injury, and the use of steroids.

Americans spend $6.8 billion every year on direct medical costs for outpatient, inpatient, and prescription drug services for cataracts, according to “Economic Impact of Vision Problems: The Toll of Major Adult Eye Disorders, Visual Impairment, and Blindness on the U.S. Economy,” a 2007 study funded by PBA.

“We encourage everyone, especially those age 40 and over, to get a dilated, baseline eye exam from [their] eye care professional,” said Hugh R. Parry, PBA’s president and CEO.

If you or a loved one believes you have a cataract, please call 1-866-733-6254 to arrange an appointment with an Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island doctor today.

Dr. Eric Donnenfeld is quoted in the June/July Issue of the Readers Digest in the “13 Secrets Your Eye Doctor Won’t Tell You” feature. See the quote here.

Reader Digest_June July 2011_13-secrets-your-eye-doctor-wont-te

Team Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island (OCLI) walked the Families Walk for Hope in Port Jefferson on May 7. The walk raised money for the Fortunato Breast Health Center at Mather Hospital. See the feature here.

Families Walk for Hope_the Village Beacon Record

Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island’s Dr. Eric Donnenfeld featured in the Times Beacon Record Newspapers Special Section – Focus on Health article about performing the first laser cataract surgery on Long Island. Read the full article here.

Lasers make their L.I. debut for cataract surgery

Dr. Eric Donnenfeld is featured in an article about Laser Cataract Surgery in the Herald Community Newspapers – Good Health section.  See the full article here. Advanced laser surgery helps cataract patients

Dr. John Wittpenn (third from right), Dr. Jack Oats (third from left) and other staff members of Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island’s Port Jefferson and Stony Brook offices participated in the the Families Walk for Hope in Port Jefferson on May 7. The walk raised money for the Fortunato Breast Health Center at Mather Hospital. OCLI also serves as a corporate sponsor for the American Cancer Society’s annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk in October.

Doctors Gerard D’Aversa (image top left), Robert Broderick (image top right), Russell Fumuso (image lower left) and David Nelson (image lower right) are among the first cataract surgeons in the United States to offer Laser Cataract surgery. This new medical breakthrough in laser cataract surgery adds a new level of precision, accuracy and predictability to the procedure that simply was not possible with conventional manual surgery. These OCLI surgeons use the Alcon LenSx^® Femtosecond Laser at Island Eye Surgicenter in Carle Place, where the surgeries are being performed.  Island Eye Surgicenter is only the fourth surgical facility in the US to acquire this advanced technology. Cataract surgery is the most commonly performed operation in the United States with over 3 million cases performed annually.  To learn more about customized laser cataract surgery, please contact 1-866-SEE-OCLI (1-866-733-6254) to schedule an appointment.

Dr. Eric Verruto of Ophthalmic Consultants of Long Island provided vision screenings at Adelphi University’s Health & Wellness Fair recently. Dr. Verruto (right) screened attendees like Christina Asphall, picured with Dr. Verruto, to determine if they would be a candidate for LASIK or a multifocal IOL. He also screened for glaucoma, one of the world’s leading causes of vision loss and blindness, that slowly and painlessly steals away your sight.