Advanced Treatments & Clinics
Our clinics have been established for the detection and treatment of specific eye health conditions. The clinics offer specialised eye health services beyond the scope of a standard eye examination. Each clinic is run by passionate staff members with genuine interest in their chosen speciality.
We are continuing to add new advanced treatments by investing in continuing education for our staff and new technologies for our practices. Our current clinics available are The Children's Vision Clinic, The Low Vision Clinic, The Dry Eye Clinc, The Ortho K Clinic, and The Speciality Contact Lens Clinic.
Ortho K
Wake up to clear vision every day, without glasses
If you’re a glasses or contact lens wearer, you probably think that you’ll be wearing glasses or contact lenses for the rest of your life. This may no longer be the case thanks to a new advance in technology known as Orthokeratology or ‘Ortho K’.
How Orthokeratology works
Ortho K consists of a customised pair of contact lenses that reshape your eyes overnight. In the morning, you will be able to see clearly enough to go without glasses or contact lenses for the whole day. This treatment is made possible due to advances in contact lens design and manufacturing techniques. Modern lens materials transmit enough oxygen to make it safe and comfortable to wear the lenses overnight.
Ortho K provides freedom from eyewear during the day without the need for invasive permanent surgery. If you were to stop using your Ortho K lenses the eye would resume the shape it was before the treatment began.
Who can benefit from Ortho K lenses?
- Unsuccessful contact lens wearers
- People who dislike glasses and contact lenses
- Employees who work in dusty work environments
- Those who want refractive surgery but are either afraid, or can’t afford it
- Young adults showing signs of myopia progression with a family history of short-sightedness
- Sports people and those who spend a lot of time in the water
Controlling Myopia with Ortho K
If your child's eyesight is rapidly deteriorating and they keep needing stronger lenses, Ortho K may help delay their vision’s decline. Age is not a derminant of suitability for Ortho K some patients as young as eight years have been successful with these overnight lenses. If you are interested in having your child assessed for their suitability to try Ortho K, call our Hamilton practice on 07-839 3072 to book an appointment.
What are the costs involved?
The one-off fitting fee is $1950, this includes the first set of hard contact lenses and covers all appointments and any lens exchanges required within the first 6 months.
The Childrens Vision Clinic
Our focus on children
Much of our learning is achieved through sight, therefore, it is important to make sure that your child’s vision affords them the best opportunities to achieve their full potential. However, one in five children have a vision related learning difficulty. The Children’s Vision Clinic can identify and improve vision problems that may be effecting your child’s learning development.
Why we have a specialised Children's Vision Clinic
Students need a wide variety of visual co-ordination skills to learn and get meaning and understanding from reading, writing and other classroom and outdoor activities.
If visual skills are not well developed, learning may become more stressful and difficult. Symptoms your child may exhibit include:
- demonstrating a short attention span
- tiring easily
- avoiding reading or writing whenever possible
- not easily comprehending the task at hand
- closing one eye to read, write or concentrate
- behavioural problems
We have the largest dedicated children's vision clinic in the Waikato
Our optometrist works with you and your child to diagnose and prescribe the best treatments available. Glasses, training activities or eye patches can help your child to control and improve their vision system and help them perform to their full potential.
All of our optometrists at Paterson Burn are qualified to diagnose and treat children but we have a specific team of optometrists who have undertaken further study in this area and have developed an exceptional ability for working with children.
Dry Eye Clinic
Dry Eye Clinic
Do you suffer from gritty, itchy, red, burning or watery eyes? You may have a condition known as Dry Eye Syndrome. This is a common eye health issue that affects nearly 20% of New Zealanders. That means one in five of us deals with this condition every day – the Dry Eye Clinic is focused on diagnosing and treating all forms of dry eye cases.
What is Dry Eye?
The most common dry eye condition is Meibomian Gland Disorder. It is caused by poor tear film quality – a lack of oily tears. These oily tears are produced by a row of glands along the edge of your eyelids, Meibomian Glands. If the glands become blocked the eye cannot produce enough of the oily moisturising tears.
Dry eye can start out as a minor problem but a number of factors can increase the severity of the problem. Air conditioning, medications, age, health or lifestyle issues, and computer use may cause your dry eye symptoms to increase over time.
Symptoms you may experience if you suffer from Dry Eye include:
- burning, stinging, gritty eyes
- dry or itchy eyes
- watery eyes
- feeling as though something is in your eye
- red or red rimmed eyes
- headaches and blurred vision
- sensitivity to windy or dry weather conditions
- sensitivity to bright light
If you answered yes to any of the above you may benefit from some form of dry eye treatment.
What Treatment Options are Available?
Once your dry eye condition is diagnosed we can recommend the most suitable course of action for you. Treatment options can be simple, like lubricating eye drops or eyelid scrubs to soothe and clean your eyes and eyelids. If the condition is severe there are more permanent treatments to consider like Punctal Plugs, a silicone device inserted into the tear duct to decrease watery eyes, or Intense Pulse Light (IPL) which you can read more about below.
IPL - Relieve Dry, Itchy & Watery Eyes Without Eye Drops!
The E-Eye IPL machine is an intense pulsed light technology that uses sequenced light pulses to stimulate the meibomian glands to return to normal function. Paterson Burn are one of the very few leaders in the profession offerering this state of the art technology. We have achieved excellent results with a broad range of cases since purchasing the technology in February 2015.
Best solution for dry eye available
We recommend this treatment as the best solution for dry eye available. The procedure is cumulative, so for maximum results three treatments are required over a period of 45 days. The treatment itself is straight forward, your eyes are covered with goggles and protective gel is applied around your eyes. The treatment is on your cheeks close around your eyes. You will notice a warm sensation and bright light and a feeling similar to a rubber band being flicked on your skin. You can resume normal activities immediately after the treatment – making IPL a quick and painless solution to your dry eye discomfort.
The E-Eye IPL treatment is currently available at Paterson Burn Hamilton. Please phone us to discuss whether IPL can work for you.
Low Vision Clinic
Low Vision Clinic
The Low Vision Clinic offers services to meet the needs of patients with low vision. This clinic is focused around improving the lives of people with low or limited vision.
Our team aims to enable patients to continue enjoying their favourite hobbies and activities regardless of their vision deterioration. Consultations are available with our low vision specialist, Rodney Stedall, who will work with you to find a suitable visual solution.
Visual solutions generally include specialty spectacles and vision aids. We also offer an extensive range of optical and digital magnification devices.
What is Low Vision?
Low vision is the term used to refer to a visual impairment that is not correctable with glasses, contact lenses or surgery. Often people with low vision have partial sight such as blind spots, tunnel or blurred vision. People of all ages can be effected by low vision but it is usually associated with older people.
Our Low Vision clinic is operated from our main branch at 387 Anglesea Street, Hamilton.
CentraSight treatment for Macular Degeneration
The CentraSight treatment programme is now available in New Zealand for patients who suffer from end-stage macular degeneration. End-stage macular degeneration is a condition which causes the loss of central vision in both eyes, and it is not correctable by glasses, medications or surgery.
The treatment programme involves placing a pea-sized telescopic implant in one eye. The surgery has been demonstrated in clinical trials to improve quality of life and increase independence.
After the operation a period of adjustment and training is needed. Paterson Burn’s low vision specialist, Rodney Stedall, is one of very few optometrists in New Zealand certified to provide this aftercare. Rodney has already referred a number of patients to have the surgery, if you think CentraSight could help somebody you know, book an appointment for them to see Rodney today.
Specialty Contact Lenses
Specialty Contact Lenses
Contact lenses are often understood to only be an alternative to wearing glasses. However, if you have a more complicated visual requirement speciality contact lenses may be the best or only solution available. At Paterson Burn we have a number of optometrists who specialise in fitting contact lenses to the most challenging eyes and prescriptions.
Speciality contact lens fittings include:
- Keratoconus
- High astigmatism
- Post-surgical
- Bandage
If you believe you may fit into one of these categories, please talk to us about how the Specialty Contact Lenses Clinic could support you.
Rigid Gas Permeable Lenses
Specialty contact lenses are most commonly RGP’s – Rigid Gas Permeable lenses. Rigid or “hard contact lenses” are able to be specially made and formed to the exact contours of your cornea. These lenses are therefore more secure and comfortable than the more common flexible soft lens. Technology furthers our ability to specialise in contact lenses. We can map the shape of your cornea by using a machine called a Topographer that helps us to design the lenses required for you. This machine is used in the Speciality Contact Lens and the Ortho K clinic to provide you with the best visual outcome, for many people, these lenses will be life changing maximising your vision and quality of life.
Keratoconus
Keratoconus is the most common eye condition to require a specialty contact lens fitting. Keratoconus occurs when the cornea of the eye becomes thin and weak, which causes the eye to bulge into a cone-like shape. The uncommon shape means that correction with spectacles or standard contact lenses is difficult, and a speciality RGP fit is usually preferable.
Contact Lens Subsidy
Contact lenses for the treatment of Keratoconus and other challenging prescriptions are often subsidised by the Ministry of Health. Your optometrist will explain to you your best course of treatment and, if you are eligible, will provide you access to the contact lens subsidy.