A regular
eye examination should be conducted at least once every two years. This
is important to assess both your vision and the health of your eyes. Prevention
can stop the majority of blindness. But once someone is blind there is
no recovery. These are the tests that Looking Smart Optometrists perform
to assess the health of your eyes and hopefully prevent eye disease.
| Medmont Visual Field Machine |
This tests the ability of the eye to communicate information
to the brain. Otherwise known as the peripheral vision test, this
test is a definite indicator of glaucoma. |
| Case History |
A comprehensive analysis of current ocular difficulties, medications,
previous eye injuries problems and family history. This follows the
Optometrists Association of Australia standards. |
| Un-aided Visual Acuity |
How well the patient can see without glasses on. This is a good
indicator of what prescription the optometrist should find as well
as where the patient stands with regards to the visual requirements
for driving. |
| Motility and Near Point of Convergence |
This test determines how well the eyes move and are all six muscles
controlling exterior movement working properly. Any one of these muscles
not working efficiently can cause severe problems for the patient. |
| Pupil reactions |
Pupils are the windows to the soul. A problem with their reactions
can be related to anything from a brain tumour to lung problems. |
| Auto-Refraction |
An automatic measuring device to obtain the prescription. This device
shines a non-visible laser into the eye which measures the length
and width of the eye. |
| Refraction |
A double check of the presciption to make sure it works with both
eyes rather than each eye separately. |
| Biomircroscopy |
A microscopic evaluation of the front of the eye to check for diseases
like cataracts and pterygiums. |
| Dilated Fundus Examination |
Using 0.5% tropicamide we examine the back of the eye by dilating
the pupil. If the pupil is dilated the optometrist can generally see
40% of the back of the eye in one go. Without dilating only 2% is
visible. Thus without dilating the pupil, the optometrist may miss
crucial eye diseases which can cause vision loss. |