Dr. Charles McBride
Dr. Shaina Sullivan
Optometrists
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- 12370 SW First Street
- Beaverton OR 97005
- Email Us
- 503-644-3614 - Call or Text
- 833-990-0102 - Fax
For over 70 years we have been serving patients in the Pacific Northwest, specializing in those who live right here in Beaverton, Oregon. Careful and detailed, we manage everything from the simple to the complex in young children, adults and seniors. Our practice is honest and evidence-based and is endorsed by many in the region and beyond because they trust us to care for their eyesight and eye health.
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Our Doctors
Cheerful, energetic and enthusiastic, Dr. McBride's love of his work is always on display. Although exacting and particular, he is quick to laugh at himself and see the lighter side. Charlie grew up in Beaverton, Oregon and started working with contact lenses at a young age under the guidance of his father and grandfather, both optometrists. He went on to Oregon State University and later Pacific University where he earned his doctorate. Dr. McBride enjoys fishing and reading and loves to fire up the grill on Sundays. He is always up to the challenge of helping people see their best. "The most important tools I use to help people see better are my ears." Dr. McBride resides in Beaverton with his wife Carrie and son Sam.
Professional Profile
- Optometry School 1995 — Pacific University College of Optometry, Forest Grove, OR
- Optometric Practice 1995 to present — Private practice, Beaverton, Oregon
Affiliations
- American Optometric Association
- Oregon Optometric Physicians Association
- Scleral Lens Education Society
- Glaucoma Special Interest Group
Beginning as Dr. McBride's assistant, Shaina's kindness, intelligence and easy-going nature have always been appreciated by our patients. Shaina grew up in Tigard and graduated from Tualatin High School. Like Dr. McBride, she went to Oregon State University and later Pacific University where she earned her doctorate. Dr. Sullivan enjoys bowling, camping and supporting the Trail Blazers, Timbers and Thorns. In September 2019, Dr. Sullivan and her husband welcomed their first child, John Joseph.
Professional Profile
- Optometry School 2019 — Pacific University College of Optometry, Forest Grove, OR
- Optometric Practice 2019 to present — Private Practice, Beaverton, OR
- 2022 Young Optometrist of the Year
Affiliations
- American Optometric Association
- Oregon Optometric Association
- Scleral Lens Education Society
Examination
Our eye examinations are carefully performed whether it is for a first time comprehensive evaluation or a focused consultation. We examine children, adults and seniors. We manage vision problems as well as medical eye issues, such as glaucoma, cataracts, dry eye disease, corneal disease, red eyes, cataracts, uveitis and retinal disease. We team up with surgeons that we have extensive experience with to ensure your excellent care.
Examinations are on time and paced comfortably. Pupil dilation with eye drops is often needed for proper examination. This leaves the eyes moderately blurry and light sensitive for 3-5 hours afterwards. Most feel relatively comfortable driving with sunglasses after having been dilated.
We bill both vision and medical insurances as permitted. Those with special needs or requests
can nearly always
be accommodated.
Click here so see if your insurance is
covered.
Contact Lenses
We fit contact lenses - lots of them. They work amazingly well in many situations, do just the trick in others and, sometimes, we can come up with more effective solutions. Whether there is a particular need or general interest, we can determine how well they are likely to work for you. We'll carefully guide you through the process, whether it's your first time or you are an experienced wearer.
FAQs
Contact lenses work very well in many situations. To begin, you have to have your eyes
carefully examined to
determine whether or not contact lenses are going to be advantageous. If you are a good
candidate for
contact lenses, we'll discuss the best options in detail.
In general, contact lenses are a good fit for myopic or significantly hyperopic children and
adults.
Astigmatism can always be corrected. If you are having trouble reading at near, there are
solutions.
Patients with irregular corneas resulting from disease, injury or graft are often excellent
candidates for
contact lenses.
We are experienced in fitting ALL types of contact lenses. This includes, soft, rigid,
hybrid and scleral
lenses. We fit bifocals, multifocals and monovision. Lens replacement schedule varies.
We purposefully do not have formal affiliation with particular manufacturers, so we are able
to use
whichever lab, manufacturer or contact lens brand is best suited to your needs. We have no
limits as to
which lenses we are able to work with.
As a technical/safety matter there are no age restrictions. For example, infants, in rare instances, can wear contact lenses. As a practical matter, however, it depends on your child's interest, personality and, for children younger than six years of age, their finger dexterity. Children are our favorite contact lens patients because they learn excellent habits that last forever. Parents are frequently surprised at how self-sufficient and responsible children are with contact lenses.
If you are a first time wearer, time will be set aside for comprehensive instruction on how
to insert and
remove the contact lenses properly. You will learn about contact lens solutions, how to care
for your lenses
and what to do if there is a problem. The process involves determining which lenses are
going to work best
for you. This takes from three visits to many, depending on the circumstances. When the
process is complete,
you will be seeing clearly and comfortably, confident in all aspects of contact lens wear.
If you are an existing wearer, the process tends to move faster and ensures you are up to
date. Finding the
ideal lens is critical to make sure your vision is clear and your lenses are comfortable.
The process for an
experienced wearer usually takes 1-3 visits but can occasionally take more if your eyes are
particularly
complicated.
The cost varies and is a combination of professional fees plus the lenses. We do everything we can to keep the cost of the lenses at a minimum. You might be surprised to learn that we provide all soft contact lenses at our wholesale cost. Please call or send us an email if you have questions.
Types of Lenses
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Rigid Lenses
Soft Lenses
Hybrid Lenses
Scleral Lenses
Corneal Molding Lenses
Rigid contact lenses are often a terrific solution. They often provide the best vision possible, are easy to insert and remove and are very safe. The smooth front surface is an ideal refractive surface and we use that to your advantage. Because of their safety profile, we don't require annual visits. For that reason and because they often last for a number of years, they tend to be less expensive over the long term. The downside is that they take a bit longer to get used to.
For soft contact lens wearers, eye care visits are covered in full for one year's time. There is no limit on how many contact lenses can be purchased during that year. If you need more lenses, simply give us a call or email and we'll mail them to your home. If your vision changes, we'll fix it. If your eye is irritated, we'll get you in the same day. We take care of all of your needs for a whole year. After the year ends you come back in for your annual eye exam and contact lens evaluation.
Hybrid contact lenses are a combination of both soft and rigid lenses. They have a rigid center "button" surrounding by a soft lens "skirt". They offer the theoretical advantage of crisp rigid lens optics combined with immediate soft lens comfort. While we have considerable experience with this lens modality, we have more success in general with other lens designs. We generally reserve this option for unusual occasions.
Scleral lenses are amazing. Unlike traditional contact lenses, they don't contact the clear, front surface of the eye — the cornea. Instead, they vault the cornea completely with the outer rim settling gently on the white portion of the eye. This has major advantages. They are our lens of choice for eyes with keratoconus, pellucid marginal degeneration, corneal transplants, stem cell transplants, Steven-Johnsons Syndrome and other eye conditions that result in an irregular corneal surface. For more information on Scleral Lenses click Here.
Corneal molding, also known as Wave, CRT or orthokeratology, is a fascinating process involves wearing the contact lenses at night instead of during the day. They are rigid lenses that carefully and safely alter the curvature of the front surface of the eye during sleep. In the morning they are removed and vision remains sharp without contact lens wear during the day. These are amazing lenses and a fascinating technology for the right individual. The latest evidence suggests that in young children they have a long-term benefit of preventing myopia from worsening. Exciting stuff!
Scleral Lenses
Scleral Lens Update
Impression-based scleral lenses are working very well when we are not able to obtain accurate scleral shape data using instrumentation. We are able to measure and incorporate the correction for residual higher order aberrations (HOAs) into our scleral designs.
We
have
considerable experience fitting scleral contact lenses. Scleral lenses are rigid
contact lenses that are much larger in diameter than traditional contact lenses. They have
several advantages over other types of contact lenses including that they completely vault
over the cornea. This is especially helpful when the corneal surface is irregular. This
advantage was recognized early on by contact lens pioneers like my grandfather however
contact lens materials in the 1950's made them impossible to wear for any length of time.
Only recently have material engineering and manufacturing techniques evolved to the point
where scleral lenses are not only a good solution, they are often the best solution.
Besides vaulting the cornea, scleral lenses provide exceptionally crisp vision resulting from a perfectly smooth contact lens surface. They have large optic zones which minimizes glare, especially at night. And scleral lenses are very comfortable, even initially. Traditional rigid contact lenses require more adaptation because they are small and interact with the eyelids. Scleral lenses are large, ranging from 15-24mm in diameter (about the size of a nickel to a quarter) and fit under the upper and lower eyelids allowing for smooth blinking.
The key to successful scleral lens wear is ensuring an even pressure distribution where the
peripheral portion of the lens comes in contact with the white part of the eye — the
sclera. (There are actually two soft layers of tissue on top of the sclera, the episclera
and conjunctiva. Scleral lenses rest on the conjunctiva.) This is not always easy because
the sclera varies in curvature, height and angle in different areas on the front of the eye.
Ideal pressure distribution is accomplished by fitting scleral contact lenses that vary in
curvature to match the sclera.
One of the most exciting features of scleral contact lenses is that they stay in place once they settle into their natural position on the eye. Lack of movement along with rotational stability allows for complex surfacing of the lens surface and the ability to correct for any type of refractive error — a huge advantage over traditional soft and smaller rigid gas permeable contact lenses.
Scleral lenses are especially beneficial for those with irregular corneal shapes produced by various eye conditions including: keratoconus, pellucid marginal degeneration, corneal grafts, corneal stem cell transplants, Stevens-Johnson syndrome and previous corneal injury. We can also fit them in cases of very large amounts of myopia, hyperopia or astigmatism because they work so well and are so comfortable, allowing all-day wearing times. We have also used them to give athletes a competitive advantage by providing them with the sharpest obtainable vision.
The process begins with a standard eye examination to determine if scleral lenses are likely to be an effective solution. We guide you through the process from beginning to end which usually takes several weeks and a bit of tinkering.
Eyewear
Thank goodness for properly fitting eyeglasses with sharp optics! We specialize in unique styles and would love to be your guide. We provide free adjustments and minor repairs for the lifetime of the frame.
Our Frame Lines
Insurance
When available, either vision insurance or medical insurance will be billed for your examination. When scheduling your appointment our staff will ask questions to determine which type of insurance is suitable for billing purposes.
It is a confusing issue because it is often assumed that vision insurance should cover anything having to do with eyes and vision. This is not the case. Vision insurance provides coverage for routine examination only. This is comparable to a routine physical examination performed by a primary care physician.
An examination is medically oriented and billed to medical insurance if there exists a medical complaint along with an accompanying medical diagnosis. Examples of medical diagnoses include eye pain, eye inflammation, cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration, field loss, trauma, double vision, corneal disease, diabetic retinopathy and dry eye among many others.
The folllowing is a list of insurance providers that we are able to bill at our office:
- Aetna
- Blue Cross
- Cigna
- First Choice
- Health Net
- Medicare
- Moda Health (ODS)
- Providence Health Plan
- UMR
- United Health Care
- VSP
The following is a list of insurance providers that we are NOT able to bill:
- Blue View Vision
- Davis Vision
- Eye Med
- Humana
- LifeWise
- Optimum
- Pacific Source
- Spectera
For questions regarding insurance please contact our office. We happily check on all our patients' benefits prior to their scheduled appointment.
LASIK (Laser-Assisted in Situ Keratomileusis)
LASIK is a form of laser vision correction used to treat a variety of refractive errors, such as myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), and astigmatism. While this surgery has been successful for many people, it is important to point out that it is not for every patient and it doesn't mean that you will never have to wear corrective lenses. If you would like to find out if you are an eligible candidate for LASIK or have questions regarding the procedure, please feel free to discuss the surgery at the time of your eye examination.
While we do not perform the surgery at our office, we are happy to refer all eligible patients to the Pacific Cataract and Laser Institute, which has locations all over the Pacific Northwest. In order to thoroughly examine your eligibility and promote the highest possible success rate, the referral process involves a total of 5 pre-operation appointments (once a week for the month prior to surgery). In addition, in order to ensure proper healing and stability of vision, we see all post-operation LASIK patients for a total of 5 visits (one day, one week, one month, three months, and six months after surgery). We want you to know that even though we are not personally performing the surgery, we are there for you every step of the way.
Macular Degeneration
Macular degeneration is a potentially debilitating eye disease most often affecting seniors. The macula is the portion of the retina, the layer of the eye that acts like the film of a camera, which allows for our ability to see fine detail and read print. In macular degeneration, the macula loses its smoothness initially resulting in distorted central vision. In later stages the photoreceptor cells within the macula degenerate and cease to function leading to vision impairment.
If it is present, macular degeneration will be identified during your examination. The more common form, the dry form, can sometimes be slowed with the use of a combination of vitamins known as an AREDS2 supplement and the evidence for this will be discussed. Examination with high resolution OCT helps us to detect disease progression and to determine if there has been a conversion to the more dangerous "wet" form of the disease. When this happens, referral to a retinal surgeon is necessary for management with what are called anti-VEGF injections into the eye. It's not as bad as it sounds and can be very helpful in preserving vision.
Macular OCT
OCT-Angiography
Glaucoma
Affecting about 2% of the population glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the West. The most common form is painless and doesn't present with symptoms until the later stages of the disease.
We test for glaucoma during your examination with careful examination of the optic nerve and assessment of other risk factors including family history, intraocular pressure measurement, corneal thickness and peripheral vision sensitivity. Those with suspected glaucoma will be tested thoroughly with spectral domain OCT to measure nerve fiber layer thickness and retinal thickness symmetry along with threshold peripheral vision studies and gonioscopic angle evaluation.
Treatment is often effective with the simple use of eye drops to lower one's intraocular pressure, and we collaborate with glaucoma surgeons if drops are ineffective and further steps need to be taken to lower eye pressure.
Most individuals with glaucoma are seen every three months to ensure that the disease process is substantially slowed or halted and has minimal impact on one's quality of vision. Whatever needs to be done to preserve your vision, we're on top of it.
OCT of the RNFL (Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer) - Images of retina in cross-sections
Myopia Control
There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that the rate of myopia progression can be slowed and the degree of myopia reduced. This is accomplished with either contact lenses or eye drops (low dose atropine) or both.
Both soft lenses and overnight corneal molding lenses can be used to slow the progression of myopia. The evidence suggests corneal molding is the most effective of these solutions.
Low dose atropine has also been shown to slow the rate of myopia progression. So far we have limited its use to those rapidly progressing.
Diabetic Retinopathy
A person with high blood sugar and/or diabetes risks subjecting the blood vessels throughout their body to damage, including the tiny blood vessels inside the retina, the part of the eye that communicates with the brain to form an image. Damage to the retina's blood vessels is known as diabetic retinopathy, and is the leading cause of blindness in working-age Americans. A person's risk becomes more severe if they have had diabetes for a long time or poorly control their blood sugar. It is for that reason, that it is important for all diabetic patients to have an eye examination each year, along with frequent visits to their primary care physician. Besides diabetic retinopathy, diabetes can also increase a patient's risk for developing other ocular diseases, such as glaucoma and cataracts, further enhancing the need for routine eye examinations.
Ocular Trauma
Experiencing pain and discomfort in or around your eye, redness, swelling, and/or seeing random flashes of light? Like any part of the body, the eye can become injured or come in contact with a foreign body or infection requiring urgent intervention. If you suspect this is happening to you, please call our office so we can address your concerns and get you on the schedule as soon as possible.
Cataracts
Cataracts are a natural part of aging, and are simply a change in the clarity of the eye's lens. Normally, the change in clarity is gradual, and may even go unnoticed; however, in some cases the change can occur quite rapidly. As the lens, located behind the iris (colored part of the eye) is in charge of focusing light on the retina, which in turn communicates with the brain to form an image, this change in clarity can disrupt a person's vision and cause discomfort. It may be compared to having a foggy car windshield. Part of a routine eye examination, includes checking for cataracts and monitoring their progression. Once they have progressed to cause visual changes that can't be corrected by eyeglasses, we will begin to consider cataract surgery.
Cataract Surgery
If you are diagnosed with cataracts, we will ask you to come in annually so that we can carefully monitor their progression. Although at early stages cataracts may be corrected with eyeglasses, the only effective way to care for advanced cataracts is to surgically remove the cataract and to insert an artificial lens. While we do not perform cataract surgery at our office, we participate in co-management with the Pacific Cataract and Laser Institute, which has offices located all over the Pacific Northwest. Co-management involves scheduling your evaluation and surgery times, providing you with a detailed schedule and any necessary information, and seeing you one day, one week, and one month after surgery on each eye. We want you to know that even though we are not personally performing the surgery, we are there for you every step of the way.