General Practitioners

• Primary Care
  Dr. Kevin Virnig grew up in Tobaccoville, NC, and is a graduate from West Stokes High School.  He completed his undergraduate degree in Biology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and obtained his doctorate at the Southern College of Optometry in Memphis, TN.  During his course of study, he completed an internship in primary care and ocular disease at the W. G. (Bill) Hefner VA Hospital in Salisbury, NC.
• High Cholesterol
• Emergency Care
  Urgent care include swollen eye, abrasions of the eye, red painful eye, sudden loss of vision, foreign body sensation in eye, and/or colored discharge from eyes.

Ophthalmologists

• Glaucoma
  Dr. Benfield has a lot of experience managing diabetes and glaucoma. In addition, we offer the services of the ophthalmologists at Southeastern Eye Center each month. We thoroughly enjoy being part of the Caswell County community.
• Macular Degeneration
  Eye health exam for diseases such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, cataracts, dry eyes, environmental sensitivities and allergies
• Cataracts
  First, one eye may have a high glasses prescriptions that is uncorrected by glasses and so the brain does not receive the proper high quality image necessary for optimum development.  This is termed refractive amblyopia.  Second, one eye may be turned out or in and so the brain ignores that image in order to prevent double vision.  We call this strabismic amblyopia because strabismus is the term for a misaligned eye.  Third, the image to the eye may be blocked by something, typically a cataract, and thus the brain would not see out of that eye.  This condition is termed depravation amblyopia.
• Eye Exam
  Our doctors will recommend the best contact lenses for you based on a complete eye examination and a review of your visual needs both at work and play. Since most people can wear more than one type of lens, it’s important to know what the choices are and the advantages and disadvantages to each.

Endocrinologist

• Diabetes Care
• Thyroid
  There are a number of ways to attack the problem. It is all right to use over–the–counter tears for relief, but sometimes that is not enough. The most important part in treating dry eye is figuring out what the source of the problem is. It can come from something systemic such as birth control pill use or thyroid disease or from chronic eyelid disease.
• Diabetic Retinopathy
  Diabetes is a vascular disease that results from the body not producing enough insulin or not using it properly. The eye has a tremendous amount of blood vessels that feed its metabolism and remove waste products. As a result, and because vascular disease can have a detrimental effect on the eyes. Diabetes can cause blood or protein to leak out of the vessels to cause swelling in the retina. Also, if the blood vessels are so compromised that they cannot deliver oxygen to the retina effectively, then new blood vessels can form which can lead to severe hemorrhaging, retinal detachment, and irreversible vision loss. The only way to effectively evaluate the eye of a diabetic is through a dilated pupil. Early signs of diabetic retinopathy often do not present with any visual symptoms; so preventative examination is important. If we find changes in the eye, digital photos are taken and we communicate with the patient’s primary care physician or endocrinologist to make sure that the diabetes is perfectly under control. If the diabetes is affecting the eyes, then it may be affecting the kidneys or other organs as well; so, coordinating care is essential. If you have any other questions about diabetes and the eye, please feel free to give us a call.

Dermatologists

• Skin Cancer
  Dilating the eyes makes it possible for the doctor to see the entire inner lining of the eye. Without dilation, only a small portion of the retina can be viewed. It is important to view the retina with lenses in three dimensions. This is why photos of the back of the eye are not a substitute for a dilated exam. Photos should be used in conjunction with dilation and not in place of it. Most pathology in the peripheral retina such as retinal tears or ocular melanoma can only be viewed properly through a dilated pupil. These conditions generally do not cause any symptoms in the early stages and can be more easily treated if caught sooner than later. Generally, the drops last a few hours and cause problems reading while they are taking effect. As long as the patient can see well far away without the drops, the use of sunglasses usually makes it possible for people to drive after the test is complete.

Allergists

• Allergies