An article in Bloomberg News yesterday reports, “Almost four decades after bionic implants created the fictional Six Million Dollar Man, scientists are far from being able to replicate a fully functioning human eye, let alone the one with zoom and infrared capabilities of Steve Austin, Lee Majors’ character in the 1970s television show. The most advanced attempts have produced pixilated images in monochrome.” However, “as many as 20 groups worldwide [are] trying to reproduce vision that’s closer to that enjoyed by sighted people,” mostly through the use of retinal implants.

The moral of this story is that we still only have one set of eyes, and if they are not taken care of, there are no replacement parts available.  As an Optometrist, I feel it is strange that my patients have no trouble seeing their Dentist every 6 months, even though dental implants, prosthetics, and dentures are available, but when it comes to routine eye care, most people do not understand the benefits of a yearly dilated eye exams.

Given the fact that bionic eye balls are still only found in fiction movies and novels, preventative eye care is the ONLY cure for blindness.

If you have been putting off your eye exam this year, please call the office today at 860-482-4439 to schedule – you only get one set of eyes, let’s keep them healthy!