Diabetes is rapidly approaching epidemic proportions worldwide, and the eye is one of the principal target organs of the diabetes disease process. This white paper provides an overview of diabetes with an emphasis on the importance of Healthy Sight Counseling for the patient with diabetes or at risk for diabetes. In addition to covering topics directly related to diabetic eye disease, this paper also provides a useful review of diabetes, the systemic disease, for vision care professionals, bringing them up-to-date on current trends in diagnosis and management.

This clinical white paper explores the meaning of Healthy Sight and how it can best be achieved through Healthy Sight Counseling. It stresses the importance of quality as well as quantity of vision correction and preventative eye care in providing good vision and long-term ocular wellness. The role of eyeglass lens enhancements—including fixed tint and photochromic lenses, anti-reflective (AR) coatings, and polarizing lenses—in promoting good vision and eye protection is emphasized, along with the use of the customized eyeglass prescription to go beyond 20/20 in vision correction.

When incorporating Healthy Sight Counseling into the busy vision care practice, the vision care professional and other members of the practice may want to review each patient encounter to ensure that the best possible vision care and vision wear have been provided and prescribed. This simple ten-point checklist makes it easy to integrate the components of Healthy Sight Counseling into the exam and the entire practice.

This simple take-home document educates the patient about things to remember to assure a lifetime of Healthy Sight.

This workbook is provided at Healthy Sight Counseling In Practice Workshops, and is also a useful stand-alone reference and resource for vision care practitioners who want to learn more about Healthy Sight Counseling.

This paper addresses the question of what truly constitutes good vision and how this might differ from "normal" vision as commonly defined by Snellen acuity. Both quantity and quality of vision are explored, emphasizing the importance of contrast sensitivity and glare in determining the visual experience.

If Healthy Sight Counseling is all about achieving Healthy Sight, then the lifetime of Healthy Sight that begins in childhood must be a special concern. This clinical review paper focuses on special risk factors for Healthy Sight in children, including unrecognized/uncorrected refractive errors, strabismus and amblyopia, trauma, and ultraviolet radiation (UVR) protection. The paper represents a collaborative effort on the part of a panel of experts in vision and child care—including an ophthalmologist, a pediatric ophthalmologist, an optometrist, a pediatrician, and an ophthalmic educator.

This paper presents the findings of a community-based study that explored the preferences of children for clear versus photochromic lenses in their vision correction. Vision-related quality of life—using a specially designed pediatric survey, with an emphasis on tolerance to eyeglass use and peer acceptance—was assessed, and parents’ feedback on their children’s eyeglass-wearing experience elicited. Overall nearly 9 out of 10 children were found to prefer Transitions lenses over clear lenses.

Because an estimated 80% of lifetime ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure occurs during childhood and potential vision-threatening adverse effects of UVR on the eye are cumulative, ocular UVR protection is a priority in the pediatric patient. This white paper explores the risk of UVR exposure in the young eye and offers suggestions on how best to provide UVR protection for the child and adolescent to promote a lifetime of Healthy Sight.

The growing number of individuals taking an ever-increasing variety of prescription and non-prescription medications have led to a dramatic increase in the incidence of drug-related ocular side effects. This clinical review paper, developed by ocular pharmacologist, Siret D. Janus, PhD, in collaboration with an Editorial Advisory Board composed of optometrists and ophthalmologists, explores the spectrum of ocular side effects of commonly used topical and systemic agents.

This consensus paper addresses obstacles to providing quality vision care and vision wear to the United States Hispanic population. It summarizes discussions held at a professional roundtable event supported by Transitions Optical, Inc., in 2007. The authors share practical tips for overcoming language barriers, and advice for how to better relate to Hispanic patients on a culturally acceptable and clinically informed level. The paper suggests useful strategies that vision care professionals and the industry can embrace to make a positive change in the eye health of Hispanics.

This consensus paper summarizes the discussions from the National Association of Vision Care Plans (NAVCP) Member Medical Advisor roundtable, sponsored by Transitions Optical, Inc., in 2007. The paper explores the challenge of educating consumers on the value of vision care plans, reinforcing the need to emphasize vision care as an important aspect of overall health and wellness. An overview of the presentations delivered during the roundtable—highlighting participant observations—is followed by recommendations for achieving a higher level of awareness.

This paper explores the potential threat posed by ultraviolet radiation (UVR) to Healthy Sight, its effect on quality of vision, and how to best protect the eyes from its adverse effects. The important relationship between cutaneous and ocular complications of UVR and visible light exposure are stressed, along with the need to provide adequate skin and eye protection.

This paper presents the findings of a clinical user study exploring adult patient preferences for clear versus photochromic lenses with antireflective (AR) coatings in providing visual comfort and convenience. A specially-designed Transitions Vision-Related Quality of Life instrument was used to assess subject preferences. The majority of subjects who completed the trial preferred photochromic over clear lenses.

This consensus paper is the result of a multidisciplinary roundtable convened by Transitions Optical, Inc. that included both vision care professionals (including ophthalmologists, optometrists, and a pediatric ophthalmologist) and a wide range of medical professionals (including a pediatrician, a family practitioner, and a dermatologist), plus vision and basic science researchers. Among the topics discussed are the cutaneous and ocular risks of both UVR exposure, environmental factors exacerbating the threat posed by both UVR and visible light (specifically ozone depletion), UVR-related ocular diseases (including skin and ocular surface burns and neoplasia, photokeratitis, solar retinopathy, pinguecula, pterygium, cataract, and age-related macular degeneration), and effective ways to protect the skin and the eyes from the development of UVR-related disease.

This monograph explores the sometimes complex relationship between light and vision and discusses how best to control and modulate light to maximize the visual experience. Quantity and quality of vision are differentiated, and the appropriate use of eyeglass lens enhancements to maintain contrast and decrease glare is outlined.