EYELAB: Kerrisdale

Dr. Sherman Tung’s name is familiar to many Kerrisdale residents; he is a respected and highly accredited optometrist who has worked in the neighbourhood for ten years. Dr. Tung is the owner of Eyelab, an optometry clinic that is breaking new ground in the areas of myopia management and vision therapy—there is nothing like it in Vancouver.

Eyelab opened in February 2020 on West 41st Avenue near Balsam Street. The office offers specialized pediatric eye care, although they also see all ages for family eye care needs.

Eyelab’s patients have responded enthusiastically to the bright and spacious modern space that contains the newest technology. State of the art equipment is used to diagnose and detect ocular diseases at an earlier stage and improve the prognosis.

Dr. Tung says, “In my previous practice we invested in technology like retinal cameras to help diagnose diseases better. We used the latest technology and equipment to keep track of information and share it quickly. As time progressed I saw an opportunity to use technology in an extraordinary way to focus on myopia management and vision therapy. This area fascinates me, and my associates Dr. Melody Tong, Dr. Elisa Xiao. We have taken our expertise to the next level. We want to be the forefront leaders of myopia management and vision therapy.”

Dr. Tung was named B.C. Optometrist of the Year in 2019, the highest award given to an optometrist. Dr. Tung’s passion for myopia management led him to pursue a fellowship in myopia control. He has the distinction of being one of 150 people in the world with the title of Fellow of the International Academy of Orthokeratology and Myopia Control.

Myopia (or near-sightedness) is a common vision condition in which close up objects are seen clearly, while objects further away appear blurry. This condition worsens with increased screen time. During the pandemic, myopia has soared to the point that a new term, COVID myopia, has been created. It is predicted that by 2050 almost half the world’s population will have myopia. Fortunately, it can be managed by orthokeratology, a technique Eyelab offers.

The higher a patient’s prescription, the more the eyeball becomes elongated and stretched. This can lead to ocular diseases such as glaucoma or retinal detachment, which can cause permanent vision loss.

Understandably, this concerns parents who wonder if there are ways to slow down this progression. Orthokeratology (Ortho-K) is a non-surgical procedure using specially designed contact lenses to gently reshape the cornea while you sleep. When you wake up you can see clearly without the aid of glasses or contacts. This painless reshaping of the curvature of the eye corrects mild to moderate near-sightedness and astigmatism.

To help prevent digital eye strain Dr. Tung encourages spending more time outdoors and suggests children aim for two hours outside each day. If you work at a computer or any close-up work, he recommends following the 20/20/20 rule. Every 20 minutes, look up from your screen and focus on an item approximately 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. Focusing on an item in the distance allows eye muscles to relax.

Programs are designed to improve vision in a lazy eye (amblyopia), to get the eyes working together in strabismus (eye turn), to improve symptoms from mild traumatic brain injuries, and/or improve school performance by eliminating vision-related learning problems.

Glasses, contact lenses, and laser eye surgery make it possible to see 20/20, but there is more to good vision than just seeing well. Even if one has 20/20 vision, the conditions mentioned above will affect the ability to use the eyes efficiently, and in addition to causing negative symptoms, they can sometimes contribute to learning and reading difficulties. Interestingly, Dr. Melody Tong mentions that some children are misdiagnosed with ADHD when in fact it is their eyes that need treatment.

Different from other forms of exercise, the goal of optometric vision therapy is not to strengthen eye muscles. Eye muscles are already incredibly strong. Instead, vision therapy aims to retrain the learned aspects of vision through the recently understood concept of neuroplasticity: the ability to change its structure and function in response to external stimuli.

These neurological changes in the brain, once thought to occur only during early childhood, have been demonstrated to occur in adults as well. It seeks to “rewire” or rehabilitate the neural connections between the eye and the brain. This approach is also common to occupational therapy and speech therapy.

Unlike eyeglasses and contact lenses, which simply compensate for vision problems, or eye surgery that alters the anatomy of the eye or surrounding muscles, vision therapy aims to "teach" the visual system to correct itself so that the patient can perform to his or her full potential in school and in life.

Overall, the goal of vision therapy is to treat vision problems that cannot be treated successfully with eyeglasses, contact lenses, and/or surgery alone, and help people achieve clear comfortable binocular vision.

The Eyelab team finds it rewarding to hear patients say, “Wow, this is like magic!” when they can see clearly. Dr. Tung comments, “I often hear parents say, ‘How come I didn’t know about myopia management or vision therapy?’ It changes a child’s life, and we are very happy to play a role in making this happen.”

Dr. Tung concludes, “Eighty per cent of learning occurs through the eyes. Ensuring your child has good vision is crucial to successful learning and overall healthy development. At Eyelab, we recommend children have their eyes checked every year and it's covered by MSP. The summer is a great time to book an eye exam before school starts."

Eyelab 2369 W 41st Avenue, upstairs Vancouver, BC V6M 2A3 Telephone 604-260-1166 www.helloeyelab.com