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The "Complete" Eye Exam
What To Expect At Your Next Eye Exam
Routine eye exams are important for your overall health and well being. If you've never had an eye exam, you deserve to know what to expect when you visit the optician.
A comprehensive eye examination is much like any other physical. Your eye doctor will use various tests, tools and procedures to examine your vision and recommend corrective lenses if your vision isn't 100%. In some cases you may need a mild prescription to help improve your vision, while in others your doctor may recommend more extreme action.
Your eye doctor will also review the health of your pupil and retina and check for common eye diseases during an eye exam. The typical eye exam can take between 45 minutes and one hour depending on the health of your eyes and whether you need corrective lenses.
Common Tests Used During Eye Exams
There are many common tests your eye doctor uses during an eye examination. Some of these are listed below:
- Retinoscopy - This is the most common test. Usually the optician or eye care assistant performs this test. You have probably seen those eye charts eye doctors use in school or in a clinic. You know, the ones with the big letter "E" on top. This is often the first test patients undergo during an eye exam. The practitioner will usually dim the lights and ask you to read through varying lines of letters. During this exam the eye doctor will also ask you to stare at the letter "E" while shining a light in your eye and measuring the way light reflects from your eye. This provides a simple way for estimating what your vision prescription may be if you have trouble seeing.
- Refraction - This test uses an instrument referred to as a phoropter. It looks kind of like a space age eye examination machine with varying lenses. Your eye doctor will use this instrument to test various lenses against your eyes, enabling the eye doctor to determine the best power prescription for your eyeglasses or contacts. This machine more exactly measures the level of astigmatism, myopia or hyperopia you may have.
- Cover Test - During this test an eye doctor may have you cover one eye at a time while detecting how much the opposite eye must move to focus on a small object at a distance. This helps detect problems including poor depth perception.
- Slit Lamp - During this test the doctor may use a special high power microscope to examine the inner structures of your eye, testing for infections or eye diseases. Typically you will place your chin on a special chin rest while your eye doctor reviews your eyes through a microscope. This test is beneficial for detecting conjunctiva and other common eye diseases.
- Dilation Test - This test requires the doctor place a small amount of eye drops in the eye to test for eye diseases. Over the course of 20 to 30 minutes your doctor will test your eyes for various eye diseases. This is an important test for measuring the health of the internal structures of the eye.
During a comprehensive eye exam your doctor may also perform a glaucoma test. Sometimes this is an optional test. If you have never had one before and are offered one you should take advantage of it. This test is perhaps the most unpleasant of all encountered during the comprehensive eye exam. During this test your doctor will shoot a small amount of air into your eye. This will help evaluate your eye's resistance to the burst of air, thereby assessing your eye's intraocular pressure.
Sometimes your doctor can perform this exam using an applanation tonometer. This instrument involves placing a small eye drop in the eye that contains yellow dye, allowing your doctor to help manually assess intraocular pressure.
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Article contributed by Snappy Writting
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