46
KERN BUSINESS JOURNAL
A P R I L / M AY 2 0 1 3
New lens implants restoring ‘pre-glasses’ vision
Vision non-profits move into new combined clinic
By Daniel H. Chang, M.D.
By Justin L. Cave
W
hen 63-year-old Leela Chavanikamannil learned she had cataracts, she traveled all the way from her home in eastern Los Angeles County to Bakersfield for her surgery because she wanted to eventually see without her bifocals and reading glasses. She turned to Dr. Daniel H. Chang at Empire Eye and Laser Center to perform her cataract surgery and lens implant procedure. Leela is among the millions of Americans are undergoing cataract surgery each year. Between 2000 and 2010, the population of Kern County grew nearly 27 percent —from 663,864 to 839,631. During that same interval, the over-65 population grew from 62,351 to 75,437. Since 50 percent of people over 65 have cataracts, the rate of cataract surgery jumps from 10 per 1000 for the overall population to 50 per 1000 in the over-65 population. Cataracts, a clouding of the eye’s internal lens, can cause reduced visual acuity, decreased contrast sensitivity and increased glare. Cataracts can contribute to depression, falls, motor vehicle accidents and reduced independence. Modern cataract surgery is a safe and effective outpatient procedure. Most surgical procedures aim to recover or restore a body function to where it was before a disease or problem occurred. With cataract surgery, surgeons routinely improve visual function to better than it was before the onset of cataracts. These outcomes are
A
dvanced Center for Eyecare, a local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2010, will move this month into a new, 5,800-square-foot, state-ofthe-art clinic at 1721 Westwind Dr., Suite B. The organization will share the new facility with the Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired, a 60-year-old nonprofit organization relocating from Baker Street. This will bring under one roof, eye care services for Kern County’s uninsured and underinsured population, as well as programs for visually impaired people. A “Build Our Vision” campaign is underway to raise money to equip the new facility so that services provided by these two nonprofit organizations will be enhanced. Naming opportunities exist throughout the combined vision complex for corporate and individual donors. Go to www.acecares.org or call 661-2151006 for information about making a tax-deductible contribution. Advanced Center for Eyecare was founded by Drs. Joseph H. Chang and Daniel H. Chang, physician brothers who operate the Empire Eye and Laser Center in Bakersfield. The physicians were frustrated the large number of patients who were being turned away by private practice physicians. They established ACE to provide
Photo courtesy of Empire Eye and Laser Center
Dr. Joseph H. Chang performs surgery.
achieved with intraocular lens implants (IOLs) which can reduce the refractive error (such as myopic or hyperopia) following cataract surgery. Modern cataract surgery, with lens implants, has been one of the medical miracles of the 20th century. However, technology has not stood still. With the popularization of visioncorrecting surgeries, like LASIK, many patients already enjoy the convenience of life without glasses. To continue advancing the field, there have been a number of premarket-approval and post-market research studies involving new lens implant technologies and surgical techniques, which allow surgeons to not only improve vision to better than it was before cataracts, but also improve vision to better than it was before the patient required reading glasses or bifocals. For many patients, like Leela, this becomes the first time in their lives that they can function without glasses. — Daniel H. Chang, M.D. is a physician with Empire and Laser Center.
affordable, high quality eye care to the uninsured and underinsured population of Kern County. ACE offers a range of medical, surgical, testing and educational services including: routine eye exams; eye disease testing and management, for such conditions as diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and macular degeneration; eye surgery, such as cataract extraction; and low vision exams. The organization’s commitment to the Kern community, which is known as the Kern Community Vision Project, Kern 20/20, is operated by local eye doctors and volunteer eye surgeons, who provide high quality care to the uninsured and underinsured. Generous grants from Kern Health Systems, Dignity Health, and generous individual contributions from the Don C. and Diane S. Lake Family, and the Don and Earlene Barnes Charitable Trust, as well as many other local supporters, helped equip ACE’s original downtown clinic. ACE helps all who need eye care, including children of all ages, men, women and the elderly. In 2012, ACE provided direct eye care services for 641 people. The organization’s volunteer eye surgeons performed 65 sight-restoring surgeries for people in Kern County.
— Justin L. Cave is the executive director of Advanced Center for Eyecare and the Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired.
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