A survey by the American Academy of Ophthalmology related that of the 64% of U.S. adults who report experiencing eye or vision problems (such as blurry vision, double vision, night blindness, near-reading difficulty, light flashes or red and watery eyes), only 13% of those experiencing symptoms consulted a medical doctor or eye specialist for an examination.
If you delay scheduling your routine eye exam because your glasses or contacts seem fine or you’re just too busy to bother, you should immediately schedule an exam. Optometrists do far more than prescribe corrective lenses.
“There’s a lot of things that can pop up and diseases of the eye like glaucoma, macular degeneration, retinal problems, vascular problems that typically don’t show until you have irreversible damage,” said Alan Rifkin, optician at Sterling Optical in Rochester. “These things are not painful.”
Unfortunately, many people put off an exam until they experience an issue. However, that’s a dangerous strategy.
“If you wait until it effects your vision, there’s usually irreversible damage,” Rifkin added. “You get 90% of your vision from a spot on your retina as big as the head of a pin. Once it gets to that spot, we can’t stop it. A lot of eye diseases don’t have symptoms and if you wait until vision loss it’s too late.”
This is especially true for people who have other underlying health conditions.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 40% of adults with conditions that place them at elevated risk for vision loss did not have an eye exam in the year before.
Rifkin noted as an example that diabetics can experience diabetic retinopathy.
“They need a dilated eye exam or retinal imaging,” Rifkin said. “The latter allows a better look to see if there are any changes. That’s what I prefer.”
Opticians sometimes spot issues such as high blood pressure based on their exam and can refer patients to their primary care provider.
Young patients should also receive regular eye exams.
According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, about 61% to 62% of U.S. schoolchildren haven’t undergone a comprehensive eye exam. One reason is that if poor vision is all the children have known, they may not realize that their vision needs correction. If they’re missed during a pediatric or school screening, their vision problems can go undetected for years.
In addition to correcting or mitigating the effects of eye diseases, experiencing regular eye exams can help keep your vision sharp. It may seem as if your current glasses are doing the job. However, you may not realize your eyes have changed over time.
“Your prescription change is gradual,” Rifkin said. “People don’t notice it. This happens a lot. They think they’re seeing OK and they go into the office and their script changed and they didn’t know it. So many people put on their new glasses and say it’s so much better. That’s another reason to get an eye exam.”
He estimates that 85% of people have a change in their prescription after two years.
Most insurance companies cover annual routine eye exams and corrective lenses with a small or no copay.