Eyedrops during your exam: What are they for?

There are several standard glaucoma tests available to patients. Glaucoma testing is called tonometry. Two of the most common methods for testing eye pressure are Applanation tonometry and Non-Contact Tonometry. Applanation Tonometry uses a contact lens to assess eye pressure. It is necessary for Applanation tonometry to put eyedrops in the eye that numb the surface, then use a dye to "look" at the pressure through the contact lens. Air-puff glaucoma testing is called Non-Contact Tonometry (NCT) and is a painless, non-invasive method of determining eye pressure. Applanation tonometry must be performed before a patient receives Mydriatic drops (see below).

During your eye examination, your doctor may find a need to dilate (open the pupil) the pupil of your eyes with eyedrops called Mydriatics. Data that is gathered from a standard eye examination includes visual acuity (a ratio of the ability to view targets versus distance from the target), neurological (pupil movement and optic nerve health testing), Eye muscle movement (eye turn or eye strain testing), , refraction (partial prescription determination), near point testing (eye strain and reading-vision testing), Glaucoma Testing and Macula and Optic nerve viewing ( a look at the 10% of the eye the doctor is able to view through the small pupil with limited optics.

Macula and Optic nerve viewing is performed with a hand held scope with a very bright light. When the doctor shines this bright light on your eye to evaluate the health of the inside, the light causes your pupil to constrict, limiting the view the doctor can achieve to about 15% of the inside of the eye. Some Mydriatics temporarily inhibit the pupils muscle that makes your pupil small and some stimulate the pupil muscle that makes your pupil larger. The larger pupil enables the doctor to view up to 95% of the inside of the eye (retina) to screen for potential eye health problems. This part of the eye exam is extremely important, especially for people with health problems, family history of eye disease or vision changes of any kind. Many vision problems can be successfully treated if diagnosed in the early stages or signs are noted before the disease occurs. Often a doctor will use 2 drops; 1 to stimulate the dilating muscle and one to inhibit the constricting muscle for the purpose of achieving a larger dilation. Dilation typically takes 20 minutes, however if you have light eyes, you will dilate faster than someone with dark eyes. The reason for this is that the melanin (pigment) in darker eyes binds the mydriatic more and slowly releases it, while light eyed people lack the melanin and the drop does it’s job and wears off faster.

Children may need to receive drops called Cycloplegics. Children have such active and healthy focusing systems that it is often difficult to understand the true nature of their vision correction accurately. They are able to focus through whatever lenses are placed infront of their eyes, making it difficult for the doctor to determine the status of their vision. A cycloplegic eye examination enables the doctor to determine the true vision correction of the eye by knocking out the focus mechanism of the eye. Cycloplegics paralyze the accomodation, or focusing of the eye in these children. It assists the doctor in prescription determination. Some cycloplegic drops will keep the child dilated for 12-24 hours, other drops will keep children dilated for as long as 1 week! Be sure to ask your doctor which drop your child will get. Some adults will need cycloplegic eyedrops. Adults who overfocus or underfocus may benefit from cycloplegia testing. Adults who are undergoing laser refractive surgery also must have a cycloplegic refraction to determine the correction necessary to programming the laser for accuracy. Other helpful eye care search terminology - Applanation tonometry, Mydriatic drops, Dilate eye exam, Eye instillation, Air puff testing, Air puff eye, Air puff glaucoma test, Air puff, Corneal topography, Frequency doubling perimetry, Fdp testing, Fdp, Glaucoma testing, Macular degeneration testing, Refraction, Accurate refraction, Accurate refractions, Extended ophthalmoscopy, Extended opthalmoscopy, Extended opthomoscopy, Cycloplegic evaluation, Examination, Eye examination, Vision examination, Tonometry, Slit lamp, Laser vision correction, Activisu, Activisu mirror, Virtual frame try-on technology, Eye care technology, Eye exam, Eye exams, Eye exam Rockville, Optometrist, Optometrists, Ophthalmologist, Ophthalmologists, Contact, Contacts, Contact lenses, Eye health, Optical, orthokeratology, ortho k, ortho keratology