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.

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?