What is a Comprehensive Eye Exam?
A comprehensive eye exam is an in-depth evaluation of your vision and eye health conducted by an eye care professional. Unlike a simple vision screening, which may only test your ability to read letters on a chart, a comprehensive exam covers a wide range of tests and procedures. These tests assess not only your visual acuity but also the overall health of your eyes.
How Eye Exams Keep Your Eyes Healthy
A comprehensive eye exam is so much more than simply determining your prescription for glasses or contact lenses. Our optometric team will:
Check your eyes for eye diseases
One of the primary reasons for undergoing comprehensive eye exams is early detection of eye conditions. Many eye diseases develop slowly and without noticeable symptoms. By the time you notice changes in your vision, considerable damage may have already occurred. Regular eye exams can detect these conditions early, allowing for timely intervention and potentially preserving your vision.
Evaluate how your eyes work together as a team
Comprehensive eye exams evaluate how your eyes work together as a team through binocular vision testing and eye coordination assessments. If any issues are found, treatment options may include vision therapy, corrective lenses (prism glasses), or exercises to improve eye coordination.
Assess your eyes as an indicator of your overall physical health
Eye exams can also provide insights into your general health. Conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol can be detected through changes in the blood vessels and structures of the eyes. Thus, comprehensive eye exams can serve as a preventive measure for more than just eye-related issues.
No matter your age, a thorough eye exam goes a long way towards ensuring that your vision remains clear, and your eyes are healthy. Contact Professional Eye Care of NYC in Manhattan to book your eye exam today.
Why Eye Exams at Professional Eye Care of NYC Can Save Your Vision
Eye exams are critical because many vision threatening eye diseases such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, cataracts, or diabetic retinopathy show no or minimal symptoms until the disease has progressed into its advanced stages.
In these cases, early detection and management is essential to halting or slowing down the progression of the disease and saving eyesight. During a comprehensive eye examination, your optometrist will be looking for initial signs of these diseases.
What Happens During an Eye Exam?
Our optometrist in Manhattan, New York, will check your vision thoroughly to provide you with an accurate prescription. If you wear eyeglasses or contact lenses, your visual acuity will be assessed both with and without your corrective lenses.
- You will be asked to read from a basic eye chart, which tests your eyesight at various distances. The normal measurement for eyes with no refractive error is 20/20.
- We will use a phoropter to check carefully for astigmatism, nearsightedness, and farsightedness. This procedure involves having you look through a series of lenses, and you will need to give feedback on which ones give the clearest vision.
- With the aid of a retinoscope, we will measure how light focuses on your retina with each of the different lenses.
These tests, among others, provide us with the information needed to check your eye health and issue an accurate prescription.
Advanced Technology in Eye Exams
With the advancement of technology, eye exams have become more precise and informative. Modern equipment and techniques allow for detailed imaging and analysis of your eyes. Advanced eye care technologies such as Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) and digital retinal imaging enable eye care professionals to view the retina and optic nerve in detail, assisting in the early detection of conditions that could lead to vision loss.
Comprehensive Eye Exams for Those Over 40
Just like the rest of our bodies, our eyes begin to weaken as we age. There are a number of common age-related eye conditions such as presbyopia, cataracts, and age-related macular degeneration that can begin to affect your vision and your daily life. While some of these conditions are more of an inconvenience, others could lead to vision loss and dependency.
It is important to be aware of any changes in your eye health and to know your potential risk factors as well as your family ocular and medical history. Over half of the vision loss worldwide is preventable with proper management and care.
Comprehensive Eye Exams for Children & Young Adults
Children with undetected vision problems or with eye health may face many barriers in life, whether in school or in sports. Because 80% of all we learn is through vision, the longer a vision problem goes undiagnosed and untreated, the more a child’s brain learns to accommodate any vision issues. Having regular eye exams offers the best opportunity to correct vision issues and help a child succeed.
How Often Do Kids Need Eye Exams?
Some experts estimate that 5% to 10% of preschoolers and 25% of school-aged children have vision problems. According to the American Optometric Association (AOA), all children should have their eyes examined at 6 months of age, at age 3 and again at the start of school. Children without vision problems or risk factors should then continue to have their eyes examined at least every two years 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
- turned or crossed eyes
- the family history of eye disease
- history of eye injury
- other physical illness or disease
The AOA recommends that children wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses have their eyes examined at least every 12 months or according to their optometrist's instructions. Consult with our Manhattan optometric team for personalized recommendations to correct vision issues and help a child succeed.
Schedule Your Eye Exam Online
Comprehensive eye exams are a vital component of maintaining good eye health and overall wellness. Regular eye exams ensure that your eyes remain healthy and your vision sharp, empowering you to enjoy life to the fullest.
Safeguard your vision by booking your eye exam with Professional Eye Care of NYC in Manhattan.
