Overview

Most of us opened two gifts this morning… “our EYES”. Do you see what other people see? How often do you go for an eye test? The field of optometry involves a lot more than simply a choice between “one or two” and “green or red”…

Optometry is a health care profession, in which the optometrist measures the degree of eye sight. It is the aim of the optometrist to achieve the best possible method for having 6/6, single, clear, comfortable, binocular vision, depending on the patient’s visual status. 6/6 vision means you have normal central vision and that you are able to distinguish details and shapes at 6 metres. The optometrist will then prescribe correctional spectacle lenses, contact lenses or eye exercises for the associated visual defect. The optometrist should also be able to detect eye diseases and refer accordingly for further management or treatment.

What causes decreased vision? There are two major categories: Refraction problems or pathology. Refraction problems cause decreased/blurred vision when light rays do not focus perfectly on the macula (focus point of the eye on the retina). Pathology is eye diseases or any deviation from normal ocular structures that interfere with processing normal vision. Refractive problems in the absence of pathology can be corrected with optical lenses. In the case of any pathology being present, vision might not be correctable to 6/6 and further medical/surgical intervention would be required, with or without optical lenses being prescribed.