Experts recommend you have a complete eye exam every one to three years, depending on your age, risk factors, and physical condition. During a complete eye exam, your eye doctor will not only determine your prescription for eyeglasses or contact lenses, but also check your eyes for common eye diseases and evaluate your eyes as an indicator of your overall health.
At eye. Optometry, we offer pediatric and adult eye exams, and we manage ocular diseases by performing advanced tests such as optomap® Retinal Exam, OCT Scan, and Visual Field Test.
Some experts estimate that approximately 5% to 10% of pre-schoolers and 25% of school-aged children have vision problems.
According to doctors of optometry, all children should have their first comprehensive eye exam at 6 months of age. Children without vision problems or risk factors for eye or vision problems should continue to have their eyes examined at least every year throughout school.
Children with existing vision problems or risk factors should have their eyes examined more frequently. Common risk factors for vision problems include premature birth, developmental delays, family history of eye disease, and history of eye injury.
Doctors recommend that children who wear eyeglasses or contact lenses should have their eyes examined at least every 12 months or according to their eye doctor's instructions.
Doctors of optometry also recommend an annual eye exam for any adult who wears eyeglasses or contacts. If you don't normally need vision correction, you still need an eye exam every two to three years up to the age of 40, depending on your rate of visual change and overall health.
Doctors often recommend more frequent examinations for adults with diabetes, high blood pressure and other disorders, because many diseases can have an impact on vision and eye health.
If you are over 40, it's a good idea to have your eyes examined every one to two years to check for common age-related eye problems such as presbyopia, cataracts and macular degeneration. Because the risk of eye disease continues to increase with advancing age, everyone over the age of 60 should be examined annually.
Utilizing cutting-edge technology, we are diagnosing and managing, with greater precision, diseases like Glaucoma, Macular Degeneration and Diabetic Retinopathy. Earlier and more precise diagnosis means earlier treatment and better outcomes. We are taking an aggressive approach to diseases that previously had few treatment options, and great advances have been made.
Because many of these diseases may have invisible symptoms or need special diagnostic equipment, it is really important to have routine comprehensive eye exams to ensure their early detection and treatment. Learn more about the management of ocular diseases below.
The optomap® Retinal Exam produces an image that is as unique as you fingerprint and that provides us with a wide view to look at the health of your retina. It can identify diseases such as macular degeneration, glaucoma, retinal tears or detachments, and other health problems such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
The optomap® Retinal Exam is fast, easy, and comfortable for all ages. To have the exam, you simply look into the device, one eye at a time, and see a comfortable flash of light to let you know the image of your retina has been taken. The optomap® image is shown immediately on a computer screen so we can review it with you.
Optical Coherence Technology (OCT) uses light waves to take cross-section pictures of your retina. With OCT, we can see each of the retina’s distinctive layers. This allows us to map and measure their thickness, which will assist in diagnosing and providing treatment guidance for retinal diseases including, but not limited to, glaucoma, diabetic eye disease, and age-related macular degeneration.
Our clinic utilizes a device called Monaco, which combines optomap® ultra-widefield technology with SD-OCT, creating a fast, convenient, multi-modal imaging tool. Monaco enables a rapid multi-modality capture featuring colour, autofluorescence, and OCT scans, for both eyes, in as little as two minutes.
A Visual Field Test is an optional test that we offer to measure how much side vision you have. It is straightforward and painless, and does not involve eye drops.
Essentially, lights are flashed on and you have to press a button whenever you see the light. Your head is kept still and you have to place your chin on a chin rest. The lights are bright or dim at different stages of the test. Some of the flashes are purely to check you are concentrating.
Each eye is tested separately and the entire test takes 15-45 minutes, but your optometrist may ask only for a driving licence Visual Field Test, which takes roughly 5-10 minutes.
The staff are kind, relaxed, helpful and direct bill to insurance. My son is confident and comfortable there and we know that kids can be uncomfortable with exams, but the staff make us all feel like family! I have recommended eye. Optometry to many friends and family and I will continue to do so! They have an incredible selection of eyewear for men and women, and their sunglasses selection is incredible!”
