Things You Need To Know About An Eye Exam and Its Importance in Auckland, NZ

The eyes, they say, are the windows of the soul, and as poetic as that may sound, we couldn’t agree more! Without a doubt, our eyes are one of the most important parts of the human body. It’s the reason why we get to appreciate the beauty of our surroundings, and well, the reason why you can even read this article; which is why we should give them the best quality care they deserve, just as much as the rest of our body. Getting an eye exam is just one of the many ways to do it.

So maybe right now we’re all thinking - what exactly happens in an eye exam? When do I go for one? Why is it important? 

We got your questions! So right, just sit back and relax, and we’ll walk you through it step-by-step.

What happens in an Eye Exam?

Maybe you start to feel some discomfort in your eyes and you decide to pay your nearest optometrist a visit. If it’s your first time, you may find yourself thinking about what to expect and what to do. 

To make your first visit a smooth sailing memorable time, we’ve taken the liberty to list down the most common things that happen in an eye exam.

Before

• If you are already wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses, make sure to have them with you during your visit. Moreover, it is highly advisable to bring sunglasses with you on your way home as some of the tests, such as pupil dilation, may make your eyes vulnerable to sunlight.

During 

• Prepare to be asked about your general medical history; this will most certainly include questions about your eye condition. Some questions may ask about general disease conditions among your family members, allergies, previous surgeries, and medications that you are taking, just to name a few.

• There is a variety of eye examinations you may undergo. Some of the most common ones are:

  • Eye muscle movement test - The one where your doctor moves an object or their fingertip in different directions, as they observe the way your eyes follow

  • Retinal examination - Also known as ophthalmoscopy, this is where the doctor may put some eye drops on your pupil, making them dilated as they put light over your eyes during the check-up. This aims to check the condition of the back of your eyes, the retina, and its blood vessels.

  • Visual acuity test - This is the most common test for those who may be experiencing a high grade in their eye vision. Your doctor will ask you to read along a chart consisting of numbers and letters that get smaller as you read through each line, by covering one eye in turn.

  • Visual field test - This aims to check if you are having difficulties looking anywhere in your overall field vision. The test involves your doctor moving things around in different directions and asking what you see while looking straight ahead only.

  • Refraction testing - This test is used for exact lens and corrective lens prescriptions. Most eye doctors use a computerized refractor.

After 

• Depending on the condition of your eyes, an eye exam may last between half an hour to a few hours.

• After going through the examination process, your eye doctor will discuss with you the results, their assessments, findings, as well as their recommended treatment plans, if needed.

When to go for an Eye Exam

It is highly advisable to undergo a regular eye exam, especially when you start to feel any signs of discomfort. There are other factors to consider as well to know how frequently you should have one; this includes your age and the previous assessments made in your general eye condition.

The Importance of an Eye Exam

An eye exam is highly important to both children and adults. Both stages involve changes where the eyesight may encounter some hiccups along the way. For instance, in children, some of them start to experience high-grade eye vision, particularly those who are of school age and would require the use of eyeglasses to aid them in seeing clearly. For adults, as we grow older, our visual acuity may start to diminish as well, and we become more prone to the development of eye diseases such as glaucoma.

An eye exam can help your doctors in pre-empting any eye disease that’s been caught in its early stages, as well as creating an effective treatment maintenance plan for those conditions that may have progressed already. Moreover, keeping your eyes healthy through a regular check-up is greatly beneficial for your overall health. 

NVision Eyecare Eye Exams in Auckland, NZ

A unique eye examination experience awaits you in NVision Eyecare! With our expertise along with our state-of-the-art facility, we take the time in assessing your overall vision health. We cater to adults and children alike, and we are more than happy to run over our results and assessments by you, so we can effectively resolve any issues we may find. If you are in Auckland, NZ, schedule a visit with us now, and we can guarantee that we won’t let you lose sight of what really matters.