Eye Exam Guide - Having Your Vision Tested:

I am just shy of my 40th birthday and my eyes have been getting tired after reading for 30 minutes or so. Up until this point my eyes have performed admirably with good up close and distant vision. I had a vision test some 20 years ago when I was working in college, so I figured it was time to get an eye exam. The first thing to consider is who will you see - an Ophthalmologists, Optometrists, or optician. An optician is not an eye doctor, and an Ophthalmologists is an actual medical doctor that specializes in eye care (can perform eye surgery). Your best solution is finding a qualified optometrist in your area for the eye exam. We found many people go to get an eye exam at Costco or Walmart since they are cheaper than going to an office visit. Not all Costco's have an independent Doctor of Optometry in their locations, so be sure to ask before wasting your time. Costco is great with fulfilling lense prescriptions or buying eyeglasses, but we suggest finding an optometrist on your own or via referral from a friend or family member. Eye exams are pretty much painless and only take about 45 minutes to 1 hour of your time. Getting a regular comprehensive eye exam is very important as several vision issues occur without pain and are relatively symptom less. You may think you have perfectly good vision and in reality it's been slipping for years.

---

Before I went to the office of my eye doctor I filled out a general questionnaire online so that they had information on me - medical background, insurance information, etc. The eye exam started with me reading a few charts with letters on them. I did it with one eye covered so you could test the vision of each eye. Then they took some pictures of my eye - you put your face up to a machine that gets detailed imagery of your eyes. The assistant then put some drops into my eyes so they would dilate for the exam done by the actual optometrist. A phoropter was put in front of my eyes during the refraction. I was shown a series of 2 slides and was told to tell the doctor which one was clearer to my eyes. This helps test your eyes for things like astigmatism (asymmetrical cornea), farsightedness, nearsightedness, and presbyopia. Presbyopia is what I have and it's fairly common amongst those that are nearing 40 or older. You will notice that your eyes strain when reading books or smaller print for instance. My eyes tested well and I still have 20/20 vision, but my eyes (specifically my left eye) has trouble focusing for longer periods of time on print (like a book). After about 25 minutes with the eye doctor and him answering questions that I had he handed me the final eye prescription that will hopefully help me read for longer than 30 minutes and not show eye fatigue. The only part of the eye exam that could be considered uncomfortable was when they dropped the solution into my eyes to get them to dilate. A few of the drops can burn your eyes for just a few seconds. Also, once your eyes are dilated things can get a little blurry. When I left the office they told me to wear sunglasses for a few hours if I was outside so my eyes could adjust back. One other thing they tested for was glaucoma - this involved an eye pressure test in which a small burst of eye is shot onto your eyeball which helps them examine the optic nerve. Overall the eye exam was simple to do and it reassured me that my eyes were still ok, but I do need reading glasses. Also, if you work in front of a computer screen all day (like many of us), the fine print on the monitor can become hard to read and glasses are useful for that as well.

Eye Exam Cost:

Since I hadn't been for an eye exam in almost 20 years, this was the one question I had going into the examination. How much are eye exams? I knew my health insurance didn't cover vision so I would be paying the bill all by myself. The actual visit to the optometrist was $169 (first visit) - that included the comprehensive eye exam. The refraction was $36. We read online that large retailers such as Walmart or Target often have optical departments and you may get an eye exam for $50 to $100 at those stores. Sometimes you will see eye exam coupons available for use at Costco eye centers in their stores. This greatly reduces the cost of an eye exam and makes it affordable. I guess if I only have to go every few years that the $150 to $200 at my eye doctor is reasonable. The bigger expense are the frames and lenses, although you can cut down on those costs too if you take the prescription from your eye doctor and go to some place like LensCrafters or even Costco to have it filled. My eye doctor was trying to charge me $200 for the frames and $350 for the lenses - which seemed high to me at the time and later I found this to be the case. They markup many of the services. When we looked online at comments posted by consumers about eye exams, most said that the eye exams at Walmart were thorough and very inexpensive compared to going to a private eye doctor's office. In hindsight I would probably choose differently next time and cut down on the expense to get my eyes checked.

How Often Should You Get Your Vision Tested?:

Obviously I waited nearly 20 years between my eye exams and was lucky that I had limited issues. Most experts say that you should have your eyes examined every 1 to 3 years. Smaller children should get their first eye exam at age 6 months, then again at 3 and once more at the start of school. It's crucial that kids can see properly or else learning in school can become an issue. You want to catch vision problems early. My daughter was tested at preschool with the basic visual test and the first year she did fine. On the 2nd test during the time when she was just about 5, the examiner noticed something strange and she had to go and get a comprehensive eye exam before kindergarten. It turned out the person was right and she wears glasses right now. As for adults - eye exams how often? If you fall between the ages of 18-60 every two years is probably fine unless you have a family history of eye problems. Once you reach 60, consider going every year. Check your insurance policy as many cover a basic eye exam and the cost of frames or lenses.

Do you have a quality site or product that belongs in this guide? We are always happy to evaluate or review new products and websites. Feel free to contact us at the email address below and let us know about you. If you have a demo product you'd like us to look at, please contact us before sending anything. Thank you.

Review and Internet Guide Index: Computers and Internet: - Amazon Kindle Review - Best Selling Wireless Routers Household/DIY: - Replacing a Furnace - Most Popular Bread Makers Cars and Automobiles

Audio/Video Electronics - Best 50" LCD TVs - What is Tivo and how does it work? Top-Rated Digital Cameras and Photos: - Top HD Video Cameras - Buying a Digital SLR Camera Entertainment/Hobbies

Health & Fitness: - Teeter Inversion Tables - Recumbent Exercise Bikes Travel - Disneyland Hotel Guide - Hotels and Lodging - Top 10 Things to Do in New York Sports and Outdoors