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Kelechi Otumdi

How to Use Eye-Drops without Missing, Spilling, or Using Too Much

by Kelechi Otumdi October 5, 2021

written by Kelechi Otumdi

People react differently to the use of eye-drops. We know that eye-drops are essential for treating eye problems. But we are often afraid of dropping the liquid medication into our eyes. And when we use them, sometimes we miss our eyes entirely and spill the eye-drops, or even squeeze too much than recommended.

That is why it is important to understand how to use eye-drops without missing the eyes or spilling them; and using them strictly according to ophthalmologists’ instructions.

First all, you must understand that there are various types of eye-drop medications. At Fanyval Visions, we have prescription eye-drops for red eyes, dry eyes, eye infections, allergies, glaucoma, and other eye conditions. We also have specialized eye-drops for pre-surgery operations and for use post-surgery. Each of these eye drugs has its own uses, dosage, frequency of use, and indications.

Here then are the recommended ways to use eye-drops effectively for the best results:

Read and follow the doctor’s advice

The most important step to using your eye-drops correctly is to read and apply the doctor’s instructions. You must also ask all necessary questions before leaving the ophthalmologist’s office or pharmacist store. For instance, you might want to ask your doctor if you can store your eye-drop medication at normal room temperature, away from direct sunlight, or even in the refrigerator before you do any of these.

Follow the doctor’s advice about the timing and dosage of your eye-drops. If your doctor tells you to squeeze only one drop into each eye, do not squeeze three drops. And if he tells you to use the drug two times per day, do not use it three times. You must understand that eye-drops are as powerful as any oral drugs or intravenous medications. So be careful about the timing of use and dosage.

In some cases, an ophthalmologist may prescribe two different types of eye-drops for you. If you must use these medications at the same time, then you must wait 3-5 minutes after the first drug before applying the second drug. You must wait some minutes after applying eye-drop A before using eye-drop B.

Prepare yourself for the eye-drop use

One of the first things you must do before using an eye-drop is to wash your hands thoroughly. Washing your hands will remote dirt and bacterial contamination from your hand prior to handling your medication. You must also shake your eye-drops vigorously before use – just the way doctors tell you to shake your drugs before use.

Once you remove the cap of the eye-drop bottle, you must ensure that your fingers do not touch the tip of the dropper. Touching the tip of the bottle after removing the cap may contaminate the medication and introduce harmful bacteria into your eyes. You must also wash your hands after applying the drops.

And if you are wearing contact lenses, it is important to remove them before applying your eye-drops. Contact lenses will make your drops to flow away – so they must be removed before using your medication – except your doctor tells you to leave them in.

Place the drops into your eyes the right way

The eye-drops must be used correctly for optimal results. The best way to go about this is to tilt your head backwards and with your gaze fixed on the ceiling before applying the drops. You can also pull down your eyelids with one hand to create a pocket in which the drops may fall.

If you are able to pull down your eyelids with one hand, you must hold the dropper tip of the medication directly over the eyelid pocket and then squeeze out the drops. You can then blink in the drops so they get absorbed into your eyes.

Do not squeeze too hard or you might release too many drops at once, causing a spill. It is best to squeeze gently in a way that you can count the number of drops coming into your eyes. It is best to release only one or two drops per eye, or according to doctor’s instructions. And do not forget that you musn’t touch the tip of the dropper during this process.

Get someone to help you apply the drops

If you are nervous and can’t release the eye-drops into your eyes, you might want to enlist someone to help you. Some people get nervous and develop shaky hands when applying eye-drops, and some are just afraid that the dropper tip may hit their eyes or they miss the eyes altogether when squeezing the drops.

The process is almost the same. You tilt your head back and use your fingers to pry open your eyelids. Your partner can then squeeze the required number of drops into your eyes without any fuss. Your enlisted helper must also have his hands washed and be careful not to touch the dropper tip while applying the medication.

Get the eye-drops absorbed into your eyes

After the drops are released into your eyes, you must apply gentle pressure to your tear ducts so that the eyes can absorb the liquid medication. You may also blink gently to get the liquid absorbed into your eyes for effective treatment. If the drops run down the sides of your eyes, just use a soft tissue to wipe them and you will be fine.

Get customized eye-care medications at Fanyval

At Fanyval Visions, we have more than eight eye-drop brands specially formulated and manufactured under the strictest scientific conditions to treat all manners of eye problems. Some of our top-tier eye-drop medications include:

Fanymox
Cypmal
Crysoptic
Relipen
Lexval
Ciproptic
Vatrop
Timomed

Headquarter in Lagos Nigeria, our company is fully licensed and accredited by federal and international regulatory agencies to research, manufacture, and distribute effective eye treatment drugs for all types of eye conditions. We have a qualified team of medical doctors, ophthalmologists, optometrists, opticians, and eyesight consultants that are engaged in creating affordable and effective eye treatment solutions for Nigerians and customers around the world.

October 5, 2021 0 comment

Eyes Care

10 Tips for Preventing Eye Infections

by Kelechi Otumdi October 5, 2021

written by Kelechi Otumdi

Eye infections are caused when fungi, bacteria, and viruses invade our eyes. It is fairly easy to treat most eye infections, but they can be painful and cause redness, discharge, and increased sensitivity to light. At Fanyval Visions here in Lagos State, we have a specialized range of eye drops that treat most eye infections. But you can also take steps to prevent eye infections by adhering to certain lifestyle habits.

Before we examine the types of top-tier eye drops and eye care solutions we have at Fanyval Visions, let us consider some important ways you can prevent eye infections and related vision complications.

1. Wash your hands frequently

Considering the fact that safety and health protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic mandated frequent washing of hands, you must continue the practice to prevent introducing contaminations into your eyes. When you frequently wash your hands with soap and water, it reduces the chances of having bacteria on your hands and subsequent infections in your eyes.

The most effective way to wash your hands is to lather them with soap over running water. You must then scrub your palms, fingers, and backs of your hands thoroughly for up to 20-60 seconds. This will kill off all germs on your hands, including the coronavirus infection.

2. Limit excessive rubbing or touching of your eyes

It is true that we all rub or touch our eyes automatically and instinctively, it is best to limit this habit if we are to enjoy good eyesight. We often rub our eyes or face when they feel itchy, but harmful bacteria can be introduced into the eyes that way. So it is advisable to reduce, or better still, avoid touching our face and eyes at the slightest whim.

3. Do not share personal cosmetics

You may not know this, but cosmetics and other personal care accessories are a rich haven for germs to infest. You must never share your eye drops, makeup, and other personal care kits with your friends and members of your household. This is to prevent you from contracting eye infections from other people and also prevent you from infecting others.

If you have any eye infections, it is a good idea to get rid of your makeup kits so that you don’t end up re-infecting others.

4. Keep your contact lens under hygienic conditions

Contact lenses are worn over the cornea to correct vision or deliver medication, but they can also cause eye problems if care is not taken. Except your contact lenses are maintained under strict hygienic conditions, they may raise the risks of eye infections and serious vision complications. So you must follow the doctor’s advice on maintaining your contact lenses.

This includes putting them on and removing them before sleeping or before eye checkups. In fact, ophthalmologists recommend that contact lenses be removed every night before sleep to reduce the risks of microbial infections and corneal damage. It is also best to not swim with your lenses so as to prevent infections.

5. Do not use other people’s towels

Numerous germs often lurk in our towels and undies without our knowledge. People use their towels to clean their genitals, armpits, and face after baths, unwittingly transferring germs to the cloth without knowing. So you can develop eye infections and other skin conditions by using people’s towels.

Remember that when people clean their genitals with their towels, they also clean their faces and even eyes with the same towel. So it is best to avoid sharing towels and other private clothing with others to prevent the spread of infections in your eyes, skin, and other body areas. And make sure you always wash your towel in hot water and soap to kill off germs.

6. Watch out for conjunctivitis among children

Conjunctivitis or pink eye tends to spread more among children than among adults. So if your child reports that a pupil in her classroom has pink eye or inflamed red eyes, you might want to investigate further to prevent your child from contracting the disease. The infection tends to spread when healthy persons get in close contact with an infected person, or by looking directly into the eyes of the infected person for extended periods of time.

So if there is an outbreak of conjunctivitis in your child’s school, let her stay at home until the infected persons are treated. If there is also an infected person in your community, you must stay away from the individual or wear protective eyeglasses to prevent contracting the disease. So be on the watch out for conjunctivitis in your community, children’s school, and daycare facilities, and even at your workplace.

7. Eliminate pests around your home

Pests are known to carry and transmit diseases to people and animals. Pests and flying insects around our homes must be eliminated to prevent the spread of infections and outbreaks of diseases. Flies are known to spread trachoma – a chronic and contagious disease that is marked by the inflammation of the conjunctiva and cornea. Trachoma also causes tissue scars in the inner eyelid, and this may cause blindness in severe cases.

Use insecticides to keep flying insects away from your home, and maintain good environmental sanitation to keep pests and diseases away.

8. Avoid injuries to your eyes

You must avoid injuries to your eyes if you want to enjoy a lifetime of perfect eyesight. When going to farms or hunting in the forest, you must avoid tree branches and anything that can cause injury to your eyes. You must also avoid staying for extended periods of time in a dusty environment such as where road construction is ongoing. Some pesticides and insecticides can also affect your eyes if you are allergic to them.

Pollen grains, dust, dirty water, wildfire smoke, fumigating fumes, and anything that can cause allergy to your eyes must be avoided at all costs.

9. Do not touch the dropper tip of your eye-drops

This cannot be emphasized enough; touching the dropper tip of your eye-drop medication is a no-no. When you intentionally or mistakenly touch the tip of your eye-drop bottle during use, you may contaminate the tip and unwittingly introduce harmful bacteria into your eyes. So ensure that you always wash your hands before using your eye-drop and be sure to not touch the dropper tip.

10. Contact Fanyval Vision for all eye problems

Having established that most eye infections can be treated with prescription eye drops, you must contact Fanyval Visions for help if you experience any eye problems. If you have glaucoma, trachoma, conjunctivitis, cataract, red and itchy eyes, or any other forms of eye complications, visit Fanyval Visions for help, and our licensed ophthalmologists will be happy to help.

Some of the world-accredited eye-drop medications at Fanyval include Fanymox, Cypmal, Crysoptic, Relipen, Lexval, Ciproptic, Vatrop, and Timomed.

October 5, 2021 0 comment

Eyes Care

Types, Symptoms, and Treatments of Common Eye Problems

by Kelechi Otumdi October 5, 2021

written by Kelechi Otumdi

Visual impairments can often be corrected, and some blindness are preventable. Since eye problems usually degenerate with time, timely intervention is very crucial. In some cases, eye surgery can be prevented early enough with recommended eye drops, and this underscores the importance of seeing an ophthalmologist if you experience any discomforts with your eyes.

According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, worsening eyesight can be treated. The earlier an eye problem is treated, the better the chances of recovery. But it is always helpful to know the types, symptoms, and treatments of common eye problems; and certain recommended eye drops that can prevent hospitalization.

Types of common eye problems

Here are some common eye problems that you, or someone else in your community, maybe experiencing.

1. Macular degeneration

Macular degeneration or AMD is a common cause of blindness in the US, UK, Nigeria, and elsewhere in the world. It is a condition caused by the degeneration of the cells within the macula lutea or the small yellowish central region of the retina.

Symptoms of macular degeneration include:

Blurred vision
Problem seeing clearly in the dark areas
Seeing an object as smaller than their actual size
Experiencing blind spots and partial loss of vision

AMD is often treated by a combination of therapies. These include –

Prescription medications
Anti-VEGF drugs which are injected into the eye
Laser or photodynamic therapy
Dietary supplements rich in certain minerals and vitamins

Relipen is an eye drop that has also proven helpful in dealing with macular degeneration. These ophthalmic drops contain Diclofenac Sodium and are recommended for before-and-after surgery indications for AMD. It is a non-steroidal and anti-inflammatory eye drug that reduces the sensitivity to light and the discomforts associated with eye diseases.

2. Cataract

A cataract in the eye is more common than we like to think. People with cataracts have a formation that clouds their lens and makes it difficult for light to reach the retina where visual images are processed. You can identify people with cataracts by the cloudy, milky white substance covering the lens in their eyes.

People who have cataracts are unaware of the problem until they experience difficulty seeing objects clearly. People around them may also notify them of a milky film covering their eyes and gradually spreading to cover the entire lens or pupils of their eyes. It can gradually lead to loss of sight.

But then, the following are some symptoms of cataract:

Dim, cloudy, or blurred vision
Difficulty seeing in the dark or at night
Inability to look at light or a bright glare
Seeing halos around bright objects
Difficulty seeing colourful objects in their bright colours

Cataracts can be treated if detected early. Some of the treatment options include:

Surgery to remove the cloudy, milky film
Use of prescription glasses and antiglare sunglasses
Use of special eye-drops to slow the spread of the disease

A specialized eye-drop such as Fanymox can be used to treat cataracts at the initial stages. A brand of Moxifloxacin, this ophthalmic eye drop is recommended for bacterial eye infections and degenerating vision caused by cataracts. It is a powerful antibiotic that is rich in fluoroquinolone which combats the spread of disease in the eye.

3. Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a disease that results from the accumulation of fluid in the eye. The buildup of fluid blocks the optic nerve from sending visual messages to the brain, causing vision impairment over time. This condition can lead to blindness if left untreated over the years, and it can cause significant pain before blindness sets in.

Ophthalmologists divided glaucoma into two categories. There is open-angle glaucoma and angle-closure glaucoma. With open-angle glaucoma, the eye appears normal but the passage of fluid inside it is abnormal angle-closure or narrow-angle glaucoma results when the angle between the cornea and iris is very thin, leading to accumulation of fluid which refuses to drain normally.

Glaucoma is often inherited and does not cause pain until too late. Some of the symptoms are:

Loss of peripheral vision
Chronic redness of the eyes
Blurred vision
Halos around lights
Inability to see clearly in poor-lit areas

The treatment options for glaucoma are:

Prescription pills
Prescription eye-drops
Surgery
A combination of the above

One of the foremost eyedrops that doctors love to recommend for glaucoma is Timomed. A brand of Timolol BP, this ophthalmic drops is anti-glaucoma a beta-blocker for conditions that promote the buildup of fluid in the eyes. It is suitable for treating high intraocular pressure or ocular hypertension that could lead to glaucoma and other eye diseases.

4. Diabetic retinopathy

This eye disease is often common to people who are suffering from chronic diabetes. It is actually the result of a diabetes complication. Due to the abnormal level of blood glucose in diabetics, the tiny blood vessels in the retina become inflamed and subsequently damaged. It can affect people with Type 1 or 2 diabetes when the blood sugar is uncontrolled for years.

Some of the symptoms of diabetic retinopathy are:

Inability to identify colours accurately
Blurred or fluctuating vision
Loss of vision
Dark spots floating through visions

In the early stages, vitrectomy can be applied to treat diabetic retinopathy. But at the advanced stage, the main treatment option is photocoagulation which attempts to repair the blood vessels in the retina with a view to salvaging dying vision.

A prescription eye-drop such as Cypmal may also come in handy to improve the wetness of the eyes and reduce irritation caused by poor nutrient supply to the blood vessels. A brand of Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, this eye medication is indicated for providing relief and comfort where dryness and infections have affected vision.

Conclusion

There are other common eye problems that are not treated here due to space. These include dry eye syndrome, conjunctivitis or pink eye, retinal detachment, uveitis, night blindness, colour blindness, astigmatism, presbyopia, proptosis, strabismus, macular oedema, floaters, and keratoconus among others.

It must however be pointed out that some of the underlying causes of eye problems are hereditary, bacterial infections, allergy, vitamin deficiency, chemical irritants, uncontrolled blood sugar, and smoking/alcohol among others.

October 5, 2021 0 comment