Dr. Shalu Pal

  • "If you want quality and wonderful service, please go to Dr. Shalu Pal! The patience, care, and true concern that Dr. Pal has for her clients is wonderful. "

    --Seleena J
  • " I was pleasantly surprised by finding a hidden gem within Dr. Pal's office"

    --Naveed
  • "Finally a doctor who is extremely knowledgeable, patient and explains things clearly. She is a wonderful human being who really takes the time to care for your needs. The office has a wonderful atmosphere and the staff are just as helpful as Dr. Pal. "

    --Mikail
  • "I couldn't ask for a better Optometrist. She is a delight to deal with, very patient, helpful and extremely knowledgeable. She was very good with my kids who can be very fussy at times.. And who could ask for a more beautiful location. Highly Recommend! "

    --Natalie M.
  • "My wife and I, highly recommend Dr. Pal. The staff, the service, the merchandise, are all top notch. They really make you feel welcomed. It has been several years since I have been able to see this well !!! You and your staff are the best !!!! "

    --Steve and Maria L.
  • "We barely go to optometrists so when we do, we should look for the best! I am super pleased I chose Dr. Pal\'s office. They were helpful from beginning to end, from booking on the phone to my actual visit. Dr. Pal was very detailed and went in-depth about my eye health. She is very patient and made me feel calm. The optician helped me pick a great pair of glasses, they were genuinely friendly which is a huge bonus."

    --Ahmad S
  • "I have been going to Dr. Pal for several years now. My most recent visit on June 6, 2016 was the best experience there that I have ever had. Firstly, the women on the desk were friendly and efficient - a very good prelude to my examination. Dr. Pal, herself, was, as usual, very thorough and encouraging in her examination. And she puts you at ease before we get into the eyes examination by discussing other things in life. That helps to ease any stress I may have. And they now have a man in the office who does that difficult examination (name of which I do not know!). He is so patient and encouraging and made the exam not so difficult for me this time. After all that, I saw Dr. Pal again before I left and she told me my eyes were good! Even had the news been not so good, I believe that I would be able to handle it because I truly believe that Dr. Pal and her staff would have taken good care of me. I will always go back to Dr. Pal and members of her team because I truly believe"

    --A. Howlett
  • " I have been to a few appointments at Dr. Pal\'s office over the last year for dry eye issues and every time it has been a very positive experience. The 3 receptionists at the front desk are warm and friendly. They are attentive and provide a very high level of customer service. I appreciate that they call me by name and remembered conversations we had at previous visits. I find Dr. Pal to be an excellent practitioner who is very thorough with her exams, has a lovely personality and takes the time to answer any and all questions that may arise. I am happy with the computer glasses I purchased and value the honest opinions I received from the staff when selecting frames. It was refreshing to have multiple opinions on styles and I felt they truly wanted me to walk out with a frame that was best suited to me. I highly recommend Dr. Pal \'s office! As a health care practitioner myself, I think all health care experiences should be this personilzed and friendly!"

    --A. Mclean
Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) & the Aging Population


As the baby boomer cohort approaches retirement age, vision loss and illness among the elderly will reach near-crisis proportions. Aging is the greatest risk factor for vision loss, and the leading cause of that loss is age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a condition that causes irreversible damage to vision.

At the back of the eye, there is a thin layer of light-sensitive tissue called the retina. Light is focused behind the retina onto a small spot called the macula. The macula then processes the details in the central part of our vision, and is responsible for humans being able to see detail, colours and to function in daylight. If the macula is unhealthy for any reason, the retina becomes like a glasses lens with a large smudge right in the middle; blurry central vision and loss of visual detail result.

There are two types of AMD. The "dry" type accounts for 90 per cent of cases, is slow-progressing, and occurs when the central part of the retina becomes pigmented, thinned or distorted. The more severe "wet" type takes place when blood vessels leak fluid and blood under the macula and into the retina. When the blood and fluid dry, a scar remains in the macula, which creates a black spot in your field of vision. Wet AMD can cause nearly complete vision loss within a period of weeks. In addition, the dry form can become wet at any time.

AMD affects nearly 2.1 million Canadians, and more than 1.6 million Americans aged 50 and over have late-stage AMD. In 2003 alone, 78,000 new cases were diagnosed in Canada. Imagine how many more there will be as the population continues to age! By age 60, one in 9 Canadians will have vision loss from AMD; by age 75, it is one in four, and by age 90, it is one in two. Despite these grim statistics, only a quarter of Canada's population is even aware of the condition's existence.

Although the vision loss caused by AMD is often irreparable, there are ways to slow the speed of the illness and possibly prevent it. Unfortunately, there is no known cause or agreed-upon therapy, so the following steps are solely recommendations you can take in the right direction, toward better eye health and a brighter future of vision:

  • Quit smoking. It is thought to be the primary cause of one-third of AMD cases.
  • Do not drink heavily. The risk of developing AMD is doubled if you're a heavy drinker.
  • Eat healthy, live healthy. Don't spend an inordinate amount of time in the sun, and eat a lot of green vegetables and carrots.

For those already diagnosed with AMD and still in the early- or mid-development stage, a combination of vitamin supplements (namely vitamins C and E, beta carotene, and zinc) can slow the disease's progression by about 25 per cent.

Other forms of treatment are more radical and complex. Sometimes ophthalmologists use thermal lasers to close up damaged blood vessels in early wet AMD. You may need to undergo a test called an intravenous "fluorescein angiogram" to see whether lasers can help. Usually done on an out-patient basis at a hospital or clinic, this diagnostic test entails injecting fluorescent dye into a vein and then taking pictures of the dye as it circulates through the tiny blood vessels in the eye.

A more modern and often more useful form of therapy is photodynamic therapy (PDT). This method involves injecting a special dye just prior to treatment of the damaged and diseased macula. Next, an infrared laser is shone on the macula. The reaction between the dye and the light seals and dries up the abnormal blood vessels, resulting in better visual results.

For those with dry AMD, a unique process known as rheopheresis blood filtration (RHEO) is presently being performed in certain centres. Generally, excess amounts of large proteins and fatty particles associated with certain diseases are filtered out so possibly harmful contaminants can be expelled. Studies suggest that RHEO-filtered blood flows more easily through eye capillaries, therefore slowing vision loss progression. For more on this procedure, visit www.rheo.com.

Newer drugs that shrink abnormal blood vessels are also currently being developed.

PLEASE NOTE: Before consuming any form of supplement or vitamin, it is imperative that you speak with your doctor.

 
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