Communicating openly with your eye doctor

Sometimes the things you don’t say can be just as powerful as the ones you do. In the case of going to the eye doctor, keeping an open and honest line of communication is vitally important to protecting your vision. Often, people will neglect to tell their eye doctor important information about their health, including problems with high blood pressure, diabetes and asthma.

They may also remain silent about a family history with cardiovascular disease or stroke. While these health concerns may not seem immediately related to vision care, it is absolutely important to tell your eye doctor about your entire medical history. If an ophthalmologist is unaware of prior medical conditions, he or she may not be able to recommend the correct treatments or medications. This can lead to serious health consequences if you are prescribed medications with conflicting side effects or are allergic to a certain substance.

Before you go to your next eye appointment, make a list of any questions you want to ask your doctor, and bring along a sheet that outlines your medical history. It’s normal to want to say everything is fine when the doctor asks how a current treatment is working, but doctors appreciate honesty about your health. Being open about your struggles and conditions will allow you to be treated more safely and effectively. So, the next time you visit your eye doctor, speak up. The health of your eyes and body depends on it.

Retinal examinations

Eye exams can include many different vision tests that measure the health and functioning of your eyes. One of these tests is a retinal examination, which looks at the retina, optic disk, and blood vessels in the back of your eye. According to the Mayo Clinic, eye doctors may use one of three techniques to look at the back of your eye. First, however, he will likely need to dilate your pupils with eye drops that may give you a slight stinging sensation. After the drops are in place, he may conduct a direct examination, an indirect examination, or a slit-lamp examination.

In a direct examination, a beam of light is shined through the pupil so that the doctor can view the back of the eye with an ophthalmoscope. This exam may cause you to temporarily see afterimages once the light is gone. For an indirect examination, the patient usually lies down on a chair while the doctor shines a light strapped to his head into the patient’s eye. This technique allows the doctor to see the eye in three dimensions and is also likely to result in temporary afterimages. Finally, the slit-lamp examination has the ability to show the doctor the most detail about the back of the eye.

In this exam, the doctor uses the slit lamp as well as a condensing or contact lens. Each of these three exams takes only about five to 10 minutes, but depending on the use of eye drops, your vision will likely be blurry for several hours. Before your appointment at your True Dental Discounts vision plan doctor, ask someone to drive you home and make any necessary arrangements at work.

Are you a good candidate for contacts

The popularity of contact lenses has skyrocketed over the last decade. It is not unusual to be unaware that someone you work with – or even one of your friends – has corrective lenses. But contacts are not for everyone. Many factors go into the decision to wear contacts, so be sure to talk to an eye doctor on your discount vision plan about your individual situation. In general, the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology suggests that people who have the following issues may not be a good candidate for contact lenses:

• Severe allergies
• Frequent eye infections
• A dusty work environment
• Dry eyes that are resistant to treatment
• An inability to handle or properly care for the lenses

If you do get contacts, it is important to learn the proper method of cleaning and disinfecting the lenses. Dirty contacts can increase your chance of getting an eye infection, so make sure to thoroughly clean both the lenses and their cases. Also, anytime a lens is removed from the eye, it should be cleaned again before being reinserted.

If your eyes become irritated while wearing contacts, talk to your eye doctor and find a way to alter your routine. The fix could be something as simple as changing your wetting drops or, in some cases, it might be best to stick to wearing glasses. Your doctor will let you know which option is healthier for your eyes.

Are you a good candidate for contacts

The popularity of contact lenses has skyrocketed over the last decade. It is not unusual to be unaware that someone you work with – or even one of your friends – has corrective lenses. But contacts are not for everyone. Many factors go into the decision to wear contacts, so be sure to talk to an eye doctor on your True Dental Discounts, vision plan about your individual situation. In general, the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology suggests that people who have the following issues may not be a good candidate for contact lenses:

• Severe allergies
• Frequent eye infections 
• A dusty work environment 
• Dry eyes that are resistant to treatment 
• An inability to handle or properly care for the lenses If you do get contacts, it is important to learn the proper method of cleaning and disinfecting the lenses.

Dirty contacts can increase your chance of getting an eye infection, so make sure to thoroughly clean both the lenses and their cases. Also, anytime a lens is removed from the eye, it should be cleaned again before being reinserted. If your eyes become irritated while wearing contacts, talk to your eye doctor and find a way to alter your routine. The fix could be something as simple as changing your wetting drops or, in some cases, it might be best to stick to wearing glasses. Your doctor will let you know which option is healthier for your eyes.

Should you replace your contacts?

You know the feeling: Your eyes begin to itch and feel dry. You notice redness and irritation. All of these signs point toward the fact that it’s probably time to replace your contact lenses. Despite popular belief, it’s not a good idea to stretch the time in between replacing your lenses. If an optometrist tells you to put in new lenses every month, you shouldn’t keep them in for six weeks. Same goes for keeping daily wear lenses in for a week or more. For one thing, contacts can acquire a buildup of bacteria or minerals that may scratch your eye and lead to infection.

The eyes are extremely delicate and must be taken care of with extreme caution; small changes in habit or environment can cause irritation or more permanent damage. So, while it may be tempting to put off replacing your lenses to save a few dollars, it’s not worth the risk to your eyes. Plus, with True Dental Discounts, the money you save with your membership card makes up for any benefits of stretching your lens-wearing time. What could be better than that?

Reading problems linked to poor vision

Does your child have trouble reading at school? If so, he or she may have undiagnosed problems with their vision. Even if a child has passed the vision screening at school, he or she may still have complications that go unnoticed during routine scans. According to the American Optometric Association, the eye chart test given in schools checks only for visual acuity – just one of seven skills needed to read properly. This results in many children “passing” the vision test who still need further testing and correction. Experts recommend children undergo a comprehensive optometric exam that tests not only for visual acuity, but also:

• Visual fixation – the ability to aim the eyes accurately, whether it’s on a stationary photo in a history textbook or on a moving line of text in a PowerPoint presentation.
• Accommodation – the ability to adjust eyes’ focus as the distance of an object in a person’s line of sight changes. This is especially important in school, where students often have to shift their focus from their textbooks to the chalkboard across the room.
• Binocular fusion – the ability to unify information gathered from each individual eye. If a child’s vision is not aligned correctly, the brain will begin to compensate by favoring one eye over the other, causing a lazy eye.
• Convergence – the ability to look at a nearby object by turning the eyes inward. This skill is important when children focus on doing homework or reading a book.
• Field of vision – the complete area able to be seen by a person’s eyes. Children must be tested for the appropriate levels of peripheral and central vision to ensure they can see and read well in the classroom.
• Perception -- the ability to process and recognize objects in a person’s field of vision. Proper vision skills are required for children to be able to consistently recognize shapes and other repeated images, like letters or numbers.

Once a child’s vision has been thoroughly tested, he or she will be given corrective lenses that address any diagnosed problems. This often removes a huge hurdle in the reading process and makes any additional reading therapies more effective. For more information about comprehensive visual exams for students, talk to an optometrist on your True Care Advantage vision plan. You can get significant savings on an exam that will set your child up for success in school, and in life.