An Eye for Vision

o Myopia (nearsightedness) – People with myopia have blurry vision far away and need to use glasses to see well in the distance. In general, glasses are not necessary to read. Myopia is bothersome at low powers. At moderate levels people may require full-time glasses or contact lens wear. At higher levels eye health can be affected when the power of the lenses required is above a -4.00. o Hyperopia (farsightedness) – People with low to moderate levels of hyperopia have good vision in the distance but often need reading or computer glasses to achieve comfortable up-close vision. High levels of hyperopia can lead to blurry vision at all distances, headaches and eye fatigue without wearing glasses or contact lenses. o Astigmatism – People with astigmatism often experience shadowy vision or doubled vision at any distance. At low levels it often has very minimal impact on how people see. At higher levels it can result in blurred vision and excessive squinting without using glasses or contact lenses. o Presbyopia – Any time after the age of 40, our eyes begin to have focusing issues when looking up close. This trouble keeping up close things clear is worsened by how much screen time people require for their jobs. This frustrating change in vision results in blurriness up close, delayed adjustment between reading and distance, the need for more lighting to read and a lot more eye strain and/or headaches. This condition is managed with reading glasses, bifocals, progressives and/or special types of contact lenses. o Prism – Some individuals who suffer with eyes that drift off center (strabismus) need a special type of lens that includes prism. This allows them to see one image instead of two distinct images or double vision.

o Front of the Eye Health –The front of the eye is quick to alert you if something is wrong. Front of the Eye Health –The front of the eye is quick to alert you if something is wrong. We’ve all had an eyelash in our eye and had our whole world stop until we can get it out and feel better again. It is the structures we see in the mirror: the white of our eye (sclera & conjunctiva), the clear center (cornea), our eyelids and eyelashes and the associated blood vessels. Basically, the parts that turn red, become itchy, hurt when scratched, and goopy when infected. o Middle of the Eye Health – This your iris and lens. The iris is the part of the eye that gives your eye color. It also causes severe light sensitivity and pain if it becomes inflamed. The lens is essential for helping us focus up close and filter UV light for our lifetimes. However, it is also responsible for cataracts later in life. o Back of the Eye Health - The back of the eye (retina, vitreous, choroid) doesn’t have the nerves needed to send you a message of pain or irritation. It must be checked by an eye doctor or else there is no way to know if you have problem until things get quite bad. We can diagnose systemic diseases including high blood pressure and diabetes as well as retinal conditions such as glaucoma, retinal detachments, macular degeneration, and many more.

o Dilation is a procedure often done at annual eye exams to allow the doctor to see the entire back of the eye. Without dilation eye drops, the doctor’s view is limited to the very center back of the eye. With dilation, the doctor can evaluate your retina for holes, detachments, diabetes, high blood pressure, glaucoma, and many more conditions. These drops do leave the pupil dilated for 4-6 hours at the longest and affects reading vision during that time. Mild distance blurriness can occur, but it is usually manageable. Dilation is required for a diabetic eye exam.

o Eye exams are recommended every year even if you don’t feel like your glasses or contact lens prescription has changed. This is especially important for children and contact lens wearers. Children’s prescriptions change rapidly, and so they need to have annual eye checks to verify if glasses are needed or if their current glasses should be updated. Contact lens wearers are wearing plastic on their eye. It is one of the riskier things you can do for your eye health, and so annual health checks are necessary to look for damage to the eye.

o We do accept several vision insurances at our office. Please call us at (425) 641-7482 or email us at office@aneyeforvision.com so that we can check your insurance benefits. We also offer discounted exam prices for people who still wish to be seen at our office, and we are not in network with their insurance.

o Contact lens fitting is an additional service that you can add onto your exam. A contact lens fitting includes the doctor’s evaluation of extra elements of your eye that may be affected by the contact lens, contact lens prescriptions and several follow-up appointments if adjustments are needed to the contact lenses. Sometimes insurance companies do cover contact lens fittings. Generally, people either must pay for the fitting themselves, or the fee is taken out of their total hardware benefit for glasses or contact lenses. Please call us at (425) 641-7482 or email us at office@aneyeforvision.com so that we can check your insurance benefits and contact lens pricing.

o Glasses prescriptions and contact lenses prescriptions are not the same. They cannot be used interchangeably.

o Yes! We are happy to help you order contact lenses. Please call us at (425) 641- 7482 or email us at office@aneyeforvision.com, and we will be happy to discuss pricing, what your insurance will cover, and any discounts that are available.

o In general, the hardware benefit provided by your insurance company can be used for glasses OR contact lenses but not both. Some exceptions do occur, but please check with your insurance before ordering. Please call us at (425) 641-7482 or email us at office@aneyeforvision.com so that we can check your insurance benefits.

o A comprehensive eye exam is usually billed to your vision insurance. If the eye exam is going to be billed to your medical insurance, the doctor must be managing a medical condition such as diabetes, cataracts or glaucoma. When something is billed to your medical insurance, it usually applies to your deductible first meaning you are likely responsible for paying for the exam unless you have met your annual deductible. Please call us at (425) 641-7482 or email us at office@aneyeforvision.com so that we can check your insurance benefits.