“I was told after this year’s annual eye check-up with Dr. Abert that my eyes have changed a little bit. Will my eyes ever stop changing?” –Phil via email
Phil, your eyes are completely normal, and the fact that they change slightly each year is also a typical finding. Generally speaking, eyes start out more farsighted when we are born. Most of the infants that our doctors examine are slightly farsighted –this makes sense because young children also have a very strong focusing ability (called ‘accommodation’) that allows them to focus through that glasses prescription to see clearly. As the child ages, the refractive error begins to take a nearsighted shift, a trend that often continues until the patient is in their 20’s. Most of the time, by a person’s mid-20’s, their refractive error has leveled off to the point that they could consider LASIK or PRK. The next major refractive shift occurs when the patient reaches about the age of 40. This age is important because the focusing ability mentioned above begins to decline to the point that near vision begins to suffer. This condition is called presbyopia. The type of refractive shift that you were talking about is a shift in your astigmatism. What wasn’t mentioned for the age groups above is the fact that eyes can be different between one other (a condition called ‘anisometropia’) and eyes can have a linear distortion called astigmatism. Astigmatism will blur vision up-close as well as far away. From childhood on, astigmatism generally stays at about the same magnitude, but it can shift direction. Human beings aren’t made out of tough material – we’re living biological stuff, and even a few degrees of an astigmatic shift can result in a change to your glasses prescription. It is worth noting that astigmatism and anisometropia are both excellent reasons that all children should receive their first eye exam early in life –early eye exams can reduce the likelihood of amblyopia, or “lazy eye” developing as a result of undiagnosed astigmatism. Vista Eye Care is a proud participant in the American Optometric Association’s InfantSEE program.
“Am I able to use my glasses prescription to purchase glasses on the Internet?” –Rob via email
Over the last year, several patients have asked this question, and the answer is yes, you are certainly able to purchase glasses from anyone you like, including online glasses retailers. Vista Eye Care’s mission statement has always been to provide our patients with efficient, effective eye care, and unfortunately many problems have resulted from Internet-purchased glasses which stand in the way of our opticians and doctors effectively carrying out our mission statement. Glasses purchased from Vista Eye Care include a complete 1-year warranty on the frame, and lenses fall under our warranty in accordance with your choice of anti-glare coating (1 or 2 year warranties depending on the type of coating you select). We are here to adjust and clean your glasses year-round. Our skilled opticians are certified at their craft with the American Board of Opticianry and are pros at what they do. Furthermore, our opticians use the latest in lens technologies to get you seeing your best –the latest in progressive addition lens technology, anti-glare coatings, Transitions® photochromics, advanced lens materials, disease-preventing technology, and digitally-designed lenses all work together to get you seeing to your full potential. These features are largely absent from generic retailers. The American Optometric Association found concerns with the comfort and accuracy of Internet-purchased glasses. Like bargain websites, we can also make our patients very inexpensive glasses (and for some patients, this is a practical option), but we are not about the cheap stuff. Our opticians can work with any budget. Purchasing glasses that compromise your vision isn’t worth your time.
“It’s been a few years since my last eye exam, do I really need to get an annual check-up?” – Sheila via email
Of all the senses, vision is nearly always listed as the most important. There are too many disease processes that can interfere with vision to put off regular eye care. Many diseases can start early in life and may have no symptoms. Glaucoma and macular degeneration are two of the most visually-devastating diseases, and diagnosing them early can help prevent loss of sight. In addition, a host of systemic diseases can show up in the eyes, alerting both patient and doctor to the need for systemic health management. It is not uncommon for our optometrists to find anomalous bleeding or swelling in the eyes that is evident of previously unidentified systemic disease such as high blood pressure or diabetes. Besides getting you seeing great, eye exams are good for your health and we recommend them yearly.
