What makes us “specialized?”
We pride ourselves on solving the “hard to treat” eye problems.
Emergencies
We understand that eye problems can not be fully addressed at Urgent Care or Emergency Room settings or by general physicians. We have spots on our schedule every day set aside to see people with urgent eye problems – so you can start feeling better right away.
Dr. Levinson is available on weekends and after-hours for emergencies and always reachable by cell phone, text, or email.
Dry Eye
We pride ourselves on our modern approach and treatment modulates for dry eye. See our dry eyes pages, and our reviews on Google. We often see patients who have been seen my multiple other eye doctors without relief. Treatment of dry eye is one of core missions and a passion for Dr. Levinson.
Dr. Levinson also suffers from dry eye and can share his personal experience with you. See his testimonial page.
Keratoconus
Dr. Levinson offers the most comprehensive keratoconus treatment in the region. Dr. Levinson participated the clinical trials leading to FDA approval of collagen cross linking, the only known treatment to slow or halt the progression of keratoconus.
Dr. Levinson offers the FDA approved epithelium off collagen cross linking with Photrexa, and he is also working with the FDA on new applications of collagen cross linking.
We have been performing collagen cross linking since 2010, and Dr. Levinson is one of the most experienced surgeons in the area in this procedure.
Specialty and hard to fit contact lenses.
Often we see patients with irregular corneas, from keratoconus or after LASIK or prior corneal surgery , or scarring from infection or injury, who tell us they couldn’t wear contact lenses.
Many patients have been offered only one contact lens choice — Rigid gas permeable (RGP) sometimes called a “hard” lenses. RGP come in many shapes and styles including large “scleral” lenses. While scleral lenses can provide excellent vision, many patients find them quite uncomfortable, difficult to wear all day, hard to insert and remove. They can also be quite costly and the fitting process can take months.
We offer a wide range of custom contact lenses. While offer scleral and “mini-scleral” RGP, we also offer the SynergEyes family of hybrid lenses.
Hybrid lenses have an RGP center and a soft “skirt”. These lenses are often MUCH more comfortable, easier to fit and to insert and remove, and the lenses are frequently available from the lab in a few days.
SynergEyes has multiple contact lenses types, shapes and materials. Dr. Levinson is the only eye doctor in the area familiar with all these lens types and the only eye doctor in the region designated a platinum fitter.
We also have the new NovaKone all soft custom lens. This new product is another option for people who have discomfort with RGPs and hybrids. As the NovaKone is all soft, it is VERY comfortable.
Contact lens intolerance.
We frequently see people who want to wear contact lenses but stopped due to blur, discomfort and redness. We specialize in finding different contact lens materials, cleaning products, and the use of punctal plugs to allow for a return to comfortable contact lens use. We have most soft contact lenses in stock to try on and we can order most products not in stock in a few days.
Research and education
Dr. Levinson remains active in clinical research. He has participated with Allergan on novel uses of Restasis, and in bringing collagen cross linking to FDA approval.
Dr. Levinson is now participating with the National Eye institute (NEI) on a large multi-center study investigating the effects of Shingles on the cornea, called the Zoster Eye Disease study (ZEDS)
Dr. Levinson and his colleagues also work to publish their clinical findings of their practice patterns and surgical techniques.
We are also working on publishing a text book of clinical imaging of the cornea.
Dr. Levinson also frequently lectures his colleagues in Optometry and is certified by the Committee for Optometric practice education (COPE) to give containing education credits. The state of Maryland has also certified out office as a site for clinical observation for continuing education credits.
Advanced technology
We pride ourselves on investing in the most up to date equipment to examine your eyes.
We have the Zeiss cirrus OCT 5000 with the Angiography and Anterior Segment upgrades. (Dr. Levinson is an expert in the new field of interpretation of Anterior segment OCT and is writing a textbook on this topic).
We have the latest Zeiss visual field machine (HFA 3, model 860), the latest model Zeiss Atlas topographer (9000) to image the cornea, the Tomey specular microscope to image the corneal epithelium, the Kowa W3 fundus camera for high resolution 3D images of the retina and optic nerve, the aberrometer to assess all sources of defocus in the optical system, and the Diopsys ERG and VEP device to image the electrical impulses of the retina and the brain devoted to vision.
Our mission
Most importantly, what makes us specialized is our devotion to our patients. We recognize that we are here for you, and not the other way around. We strive to be available for emergent and urgent appointments– we don’t want you to wait days or weeks to see your doctor when you need to be seen.
From our front desk on the phone to make your appointment or answer your questions (we always have a person and not a computer answer our phones) to our spacious and comfortable waiting room with Wi-Fi and coffee and water, to our caring, knowledgeable and professional Ophthalmic technicians.
