What Counts As A Complete Eye Exam?
Everyone needs to get regular eye exams. How often you need one depends on your age and whether you have any symptoms or vision problems.
A complete eye exam, also called a comprehensive eye exam, can help prevent vision loss. They are vital to diagnosing underlying eye conditions you may have.
Keep reading to learn more about complete eye exams and what happens in one!
How Often Should You Get an Eye Exam?
Generally, a comprehensive eye exam takes about one to one and a half hours. During an eye exam, your eye doctor will assess your eyes to check for any diseases and see if you need glasses.
Eye exams are necessary to ensure your eyes are healthy and that your vision is clear. And it’s not enough to have just one eye exam.
Depending on how old you are, there are recommendations as to how often you should get one. These recommendations are:
- Age twenty to thirty-nine, once every five years
- Between the ages of forty and fifty-four, once every two to four years
- The fifty-five to sixty-four age range, once every one to three years
- Once every year after the age of sixty-five
If you have vision problems or are at risk for an eye condition, you need to see your eye doctor more frequently. Each time you have an eye exam, you and your eye doctor will go through the following:
Patient and Family Health History
You will need to provide your eye doctor with a current list of medications and those you recently stopped taking. They will also want to know whether you are having any vision problems.
You will also need to answer questions about your family health history. Some of these questions may include:
- Did your grandparents have cataracts, glaucoma, or any other eye conditions?
- Do you have any particular health conditions or concerns?
- When was your last appointment with your primary care physician?
- Are you diabetic?
- Do you have high blood pressure?
Other health conditions can also impact your eyesight, so your eye doctor will want to track them.
Visual Acuity and Measurement
The visual acuity test is the eye exam test most people think of. It’s where you cover one of your eyes and read from a list of letters on a chart placed twenty feet away from you. It checks your ability to see from far away.
Another standard vision test is a refraction test. This test is when your eye doctor flashes different images in front of your eye, and you tell them which is better. If the results are poor for either test, you may need a prescription for glasses.
Preliminary Tests of Visual Function and Eye Health
This series of eye tests checks for any vision impairment and your overall eye health. These tests consist of:
- Depth perception
- Color vision
- Peripheral vision
- Response of the pupils to light
Another test in a comprehensive eye exam is a dilation exam. During a dilation, your eye doctor gives you eyedrops that make your pupils larger.
By widening your pupils, they can look at structures inside your eye. A dilation test will help your eye doctor determine if you have any hidden eye diseases.
Depending on your health, family health, and risk factors, you may need additional testing. Regular eye exams are vital to ensuring you maintain good eye health.
Has it been too long since your last complete eye exam? Don’t put it off another day! Schedule an appointment at Pinke Eye Center in Shelton, CT, to keep your eyes safe and healthy!
