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For the past 25 years, Rochelle* has worked as a certified public accountant at a midsized accounting firm in downtown Orlando, about a half hour drive from her home in Oviedo.
“My job mostly involves auditing the books of our clients, which are primarily small businesses,” the New York native expounds. “But I also prepare and file tax documents and produce financial reports for clients. The job requires staring at rows of numbers on a computer screen – and sometimes printed ledgers – all day long”.
Rochelle needs excellent close-up and intermediate vision to clearly see her computer and printed ledgers. But beginning in 2022, the 54 year old noticed certain aggravating issues with her eyes and vision that affected not only her concentration at work, but her leisure activities as well.
“My eyes became extremely dry, so dry that my eyelids would be stuck together when I woke up in the morning”, Rochelle describes. There was a burning and itching sensation in my eyes as well. My eyes were red, and my vision was often blurry, which caused problems when working on the computer and playing tennis. That’s what prompted me to seek treatment.
-Rochelle
Rochelle first consulted her primary care physician, who explained that she was likely suffering from dry eye disease, a common disorder that occurs when the tears can’t provide sufficient lubrication to keep eyes moist.
The condition often causes discomfort and an array of symptoms, including stinging and burning in the eyes, fluctuating or blurred vision, a scratchy or gritty feeling like something is in the eye, redness or irritation in the eyes, discomfort when wearing contact lenses, eye fatigue, light sensitivity, and excessive tearing.
“My doctor recommended I use artificial tears to supplement my natural tear production, but the drops did little to ease my symptoms,” Rochelle laments. “Then he suggested that I see an eye doctor who has experience in treating dry eye disease. My eye doctor, Dr. Patel, fit the bill, so I made an appointment to see her”.
Treated Like Family
Mona Patel, OD, is a board-certified optometrist and the owner of Bayhead Eye Centre in Sanford. Locally owned and operated for more than 40 years, Bayhead Eye Centre was founded by Ingrid Peterson, OD. Following Dr. Peterson’s retirement in 2022, Dr. Patel, who had been on the staff for six years, took ownership of the practice, where she treats a variety of eye conditions, including dry eye disease.
“We are a small private practice devoted to personalized care,” Dr. Patel describes. “We want to keep it small. Most of our employees have been here for many years since Dr. Peterson’s ownership, so our patients are familiar with our friendly and helpful staff. We pride ourselves on customer service and on responding to our patients’ needs.”
“We don’t think of our patients as consumers, like many corporate practices do. We like to think of them as family. We take time to get to know our patients and their individual needs. We then create a customized treatment plan tailored to them to provide the very best eye care experience.”
At Bayhead Eye Centre, the board-certified providers offer vision and eye health services for a greater quality of life. “We offer a wide range of services, from routine comprehensive eye exams to diabetic eye care to the treatment and management of glaucoma and macular degeneration,” Dr. Patel details. We handle emergency situations such as pink eye and other eye infections. We fit contact lenses, and offer a large selection of eyeglass frames, including many designer models, in our optical boutique.”
A service Dr. Patel has been steadily expanding is the treatment and management of dry eye disease. She recently acquired new technology to better care for patients with the disorder. “When I first graduated from optometry school, we were taught to treat dry eye by prescribing drops in the eyes to keep them lubricated,” Dr. Patel observes. “But that was just a band aid. Since then, in the last 5-10 years especially, we’ve learned a lot more about dry eye disease, the root causes of it, and how to treat those causes.”
One of the main causes is the blockage of the Meibomian glands in the upper and lower eyelids. These glands produce the oily layer of the tear film. This oily layer of the tear film helps to lubricate the front surface of the eyes. Over time, these glands become blocked by hardened oil and debris, and they cannot effectively secrete oil into the tear film. This condition is called Meibomian gland dysfunction, or MGD.
After a thorough evaluation, Dr. Patel determined that MGD was the culprit behind Rochelle’s dry eye problem. To correct the issue, Dr. Patel recommended one of the practice’s advanced treatment options.
“We recently started offering radiofrequency (RF) and intense pulsed light (IPL), two treatments that use heat to melt away the hardened oil that is blocking the Meibomian glands,” Dr. Patel explains.
Radiofrequency uses energy waves, and IPL uses specific wavelengths of light to bulk heat Meibomian glands.
“These treatments enable the glands to secrete their oils efficiently, which stabilizes the tear film and eases dry eye symptoms,” Dr. Patel continues.
“Healthy Again”
Dr. Patel treated Rochelle with 4 monthly RF and IPL treatments, beginning in September. The CPA noticed an improvement in her symptoms after a few sessions.
“After my first few RF/ IPL treatments, I felt less burning, redness, and dryness in my eyes. My blurry vision cleared up dramatically”, Rochelle enthuses. By the time the treatment was completed, my eyes felt healthy again.
Today, my eyelids no longer stick together in the morning, and the redness is gone completely. I’m amazed and extremely pleased with the outcome”.
Annual maintenance treatments are recommended to sustain the benefits of radiofrequency and IPL long term, but that doesn’t concern Rochelle. She never again wants to experience the symptoms she had. Plus, she has complete trust in Dr. Patel.
“Dr. Patel really knows her stuff, and she is very friendly and compassionate,” Rochelle raves. “She’s got a laid-back temperament, which kept me calm, and made me feel comfortable. She explained exactly what was going on with my eyes and how the treatment would help. And she was right on the money.
“I highly recommend Dr. Patel and Bayhead Eye Centre”.
* Patient’s name changed at her request.
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