Comprehensive eye exams are an important part of your preventative care. This is because regular appointments with your eye doctor give them an opportunity to closely monitor the health and condition of your eyes and vision. If there are any concerning changes then they can act on them to diagnose and treat the problem promptly, before it has any long-term consequences for your vision.
Eye doctors recommend that the majority of people attend a comprehensive eye exam at least once every 2 years, or more frequently if advised to. However, if you’ve not been for an appointment recently, you may have forgotten some of the things that you need to do ahead of your visit. Here’s what you need to know about how to prepare for a comprehensive eye exam.
Things To Bring With You:
There are a number of items that you should ideally bring with you when you attend your comprehensive eye exam. These will help to ensure that your eye doctor has the information that they need. Items you should bring include:
- Any glasses that you use, including sunglasses
- Sunglasses for driving home
- A list of any current medications that you take, including eye drops.
- If you have insurance, details of this
- If you currently wear contact lenses, come into your appointment wearing them and being their boxes and the solutions that you use to clean them.
Try to arrive around 10 minutes early for your appointment. Planning your time of arrival carefully can prevent you rushing and becoming flustered and stressed.
What To Expect On The Day Of Your Comprehensive Eye Exam
It can be a little nerve-wracking attending an appointment if you don’t know what to expect. Fortunately, most of the components of a comprehensive eye exam are the same for the majority of patients. You should allow at least an hour for their appointment, particularly if there is a chance that you will need to pick glasses or discuss treatments. Giving yourself plenty of time will help put you at ease for the duration of your appointment.
Some of the core elements of a comprehensive eye exam include:
- Testing your visual acuity: how clearly you can see at different distances
- Looking at the alignment of your eyes to make sure that they work properly together
- Making sure your eyes can move smoothly together and follow a moving object
- Depth perception testing
- A slit lamp exam: this is used to take a look at the structures inside your eye, ensuring that there are no abnormalities
Your eye exam could be used to detect a range of eye conditions, including cataracts, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma.
Some patients may need to have their eyes dilated for part of the exam. Your eye doctors will use eyedrops to dilate your eyes, but they will blur your near vision and make you more sensitive to light. If you need your eyes dilated, you may wish to arrange for someone to drive you home after your appointment.
If you’d like to learn more about what to expect from your comprehensive eye exam, our team at Eye Care Center Optometrist, PSC would be happy to help. Contact us today to speak to us or to schedule an appointment at (859) 208-2020.
