One aspect of maintaining your physical health is taking care of your eyes and vision. To do this, regular eye exams are necessary. With that said, many people visit optometrists and opticians without giving the exam or their conversation with an eye doctor much thought. However, thinking about questions to ask during your upcoming visit can be beneficial.
Eye exams are routine, or at least they should be! Whether you have a routine eye exam or you have an issue with your eyes you want to have looked at, it’s good to know what you should ask your eye doctor during your eye exam.
1. What Kind of Imaging Technology Do You Use?
Before scheduling a visit with any local eye doctor, find out about the imaging technology . For example, optometrists at True Eye Care use a variety of cutting-edge technology such as digital retinal imaging, visual field testing and optical coherence tomography scans to detect a variety of eye diseases and other medical conditions such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, retinal tears and diabetes.
2. What Do Testing Results Mean?
After you undergo testing, it is equally important to ask about the results. Sometimes, it can be tempting to simply take a doctor’s word for it if everything looks okay, but learning more about what your test results mean can help you have a better understanding of your health. This is even more true if your results identify any problems.
3. Are Follow-Up Visits Necessary?
In many cases, an optometrist will perform an eye exam within an hour or two. Soon afterward, you will receive your new eyewear via pickup or shipping, and that is the end of the interaction until your next annual visit. However, sometimes follow-up visits are necessary, depending on various factors. For example, if tests identify potential health problems or you need a specific type of eyewear that an optometrist does not usually carry, you may need to plan on scheduling several visits.
4. Should I Expect Dilation?
When you visit an eye doctor, pupil dilation is common. This is a process that lets more light into your eye and it helps the eye doctor check for several common eye problems. Although dilation does not hurt, it can have some downsides. For example, it can temporarily blur your vision and make your eyes more sensitive. Because these factors can negatively impact tasks at school and work, it is best to plan ahead so you know what to expect on the day of your exam. Usually, it takes about 20–30 minutes for your pupils to fully dilate and they can stay that way for several hours.
5. Do You Have My Full Medical History?
While your eyes may differ from other aspects of your body, all body parts and processes are connected. As such, it is just as important for your eye doctor to have your full medical history as it is for your dentist, neurologist, dermatologist or any other medical professional. Sometimes, certain medications and conditions can have bad interactions with eye exam procedures. By understanding your full medical history, your eye doctor will be able to prevent problems.
6. Will My Condition Change Over Time?
If testing results show that you have a particular eye condition, another question that you should ask is how things will change over time. Keep in mind, everyone’s experiences vary, but your eye doctor should be able to give you a solid idea on what to expect with your prognosis. Even if your eyes are healthy now and your vision is clear, asking about that can be insightful, too. Finding out what kind of factors impact your eye health can help you prevent problems in the future, too.
Schedule Your Appointment
Many people fail to keep up with their eye health, which can lead to major complications down the road. However, scheduling annual appointments and asking the right questions may prevent or stop eye disease from interfering with your life.
Our team at ReVision Optometry is happy to assist you with your eye care needs.