Info about Opticians
Visit Your Optician Regularly
Many people suffer from many different vision problems. Some of those vision problems can be hereditary, but not all of them. While common vision problems are because of cellular deterioration as we get older, the vision problems that are hereditary can begin at a much younger age. Regular eye exams are able to help detect some of these problems before they get worse. Sometimes when corrected early enough with contacts or glasses the problem can be prevented from getting worse and sometimes corrected. This is why regular eye exams are so important.
A proper eye exam should be performed by a licensed optician and when done correctly should take at least an hour. Eye exams may slighly differ depending on the eye doctor that you see, but the tests should be very similar. You visit to the eye doctor should always include discussing with your eye doctor any health issues you are having and your standard way of life; a test to determine whether your eyes work together properly; checking for any other problems that can cause vision problems such as diabetes, cataract, or hypertension; the eye doctor has to make sure you can see in a reading distance, near and far away; using different lenses to decide whether contact lenses or eyeglasses are best for you; letting you read using your naked eye to determine your normal range in vision; and checking your eyes with the current eyeglasses or contact lenses that you wear.
There are several different tests used by eye doctors. The color vision test is used to determine whether a person is color blind or not. Color blindness is usually hereditary and does not mean that the person doesn’t see color at all. Usually a color blind person has a hard time determining the difference between two or more colors depending on how severe their color blindness is. Color blindness is most common in males, and can sometimes be corrected. The visual fields screener test is a test used to measure the patient’s field of view, but it is also used to test for glaucoma which is an illness of the optic nerves. The tonometer is a device used to measure the internal pressure on the eye. This test is usually done on people over 40 years of age or people that are more likely to develop glaucoma later in life. Another test that is done by the optometrist is the reading of you prescription by using a device called the retinoscope.
Once the eye doctor is finished with all of the tests and the eye exam is over the optometrist will discuss the results of any tests that were performed, and then prescribe any glasses or contacts that you may need. Once everything has been discussed and you have received any prescriptions you need, the eye doctor will then let you know when you should have your next eye examination. It is normally recommended to visit the eye doctor on a yearly basis, but in some cases it is more often.