Dry eye syndrome is one of the leading reasons people visit their eye care professional. It’s a source of discomfort (burning, irritation), frustration (blurred vision), and annoyance (sensitivity to light) for the 20 million Americans who suffer, many of which are middle-aged women. Dry eye makes it difficult to read, drive, and work at a computer or spend any length of time in a very dry environment, like the cabin of an airplane.
“Chu Vision Institute is one of the first 15 sites in the country to take advantage of the revolutionary Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) therapy treatment for dry eye,” says Dr. Y. Ralph Chu, founder and medical director, Chu Vision Institute, and adjunct associate professor of ophthalmology at the University of Minnesota.
IPL started as a dermatology treatment for patients with the skin disorder rosacea. It works on dry eye by creating a significant amount of superficial heat, targeting the abnormal blood vessels and increasing the flow of impacted meibomian secretions. It’s comfortable and quick.
“One of the pleasant side effects of this procedure is younger, healthier looking skin,” says Dr. Chu.
This caring, dedicated doctor has 18 years of experience “giving people the gift of sight.”
His interest in the field of ophthalmology was sparked at the age of 10, when he saw a TV show about a man who regained his sight later in life and was able to see his child for the first time. “I never forgot the look on that man’s face,” says Dr. Chu. “I wanted to be able to help people in that same way.”
Today he is a fellowship-trained corneal specialist in cataract, refractive and corneal surgery. Having performed thousands of LASIK procedures to help people reduce their dependency on eyeglasses and contacts, his latest project is an FDA clinical trial designed to reduce or eliminate the need for reading glasses. He has participated in over 50 clinical evaluations or FDA clinical trials dealing with cataract and intraocular lens implantation, phakic lens implantations, laser vision correction technologies, and ocular therapeutic treatments. He serves on numerous editorial boards and has lectured around the world. At the end of the day, though, it is always about the patients he sees at his Bloomington clinic.
“The trust my patients place in my staff and me is what I treasure the most,” says Dr. Chu. “My goal is to empower our patients through education so that they can make the best decisions possible to improve their vision and transform their lives.”