Eye Care
When Should I Get An Eye Test?
We recommend a test if you have any of the following symptoms:
- Headaches, nausea or dizziness after visual concentration
- Crossed or turned eyes
- Blinking or eye rubbing after visual concentration
- Dislike or avoidance of close work
- Placing head close to book when reading or writing
- Squinting while looking at the TV or driving
- Poor night vision
- Difficulty reading small print
- Difficulty adjusting focus between near and far objects.
How Often Should You Have Your Eyes Examined?
It is important to have your eyes examined regularly. For most people we recommend a test every 2 years. If your eyes are changing quickly, or you have an ocular condition like diabetes or cataracts we recommend an annual test. Our optometrists will discuss these ongoing care requirements with you during your eye test.
Visual Field Testing
Your visual field is how wide of an area your eye can see when you focus on a central point. Visual field testing is one way we measures how much vision you have in either eye, and how much vision loss may have occurred over time. A visual field test can determine if you have a blind spot (called scotoma) in your vision and where they are. A scotoma’s size and shape can show how eye disease or a brain disorder is affecting your vision. For example, if you have glaucoma this test helps to show any peripheral vision loss from the disease. We can also use this test to assess how vision may be limited by eyelid problems such as ptosis and droopy eyelids.
Colour Vision
Colour blindness (colour vision deficiency, or CVD) affects approximately 1 in 12 men (8%) and 1 in 200 women in the world. In Australia this means that there are approximately 1 million colour blind people (about 4.5% of the entire population), most of whom are male.
There are different causes of colour blindness. For the vast majority of people with deficient colour vision the condition is genetic and has been inherited from their mother, although some people become colour blind as a result of other diseases such as diabetes and multiple sclerosis, or they acquire the condition over time due to the ageing process, medication etc.
Our testing equipment includes the Ishihara test for screening and the Farnsworth D-15 test for determining type and severity.
If you have concerns that yourself, or your children, have colour vision problems then book an eye test and we’ll find out. Even if you’ve been told that you are colour blind and would like to find out more (ie type and severity) then feel free to come in.
Eye Care with Digital Retinal Photography
Digital Retinal Photography uses high-resolution imaging systems to capture images of the inside of your eye. This helps to assess the health of the retina and to detect and manage eye conditions and disease. The main structures that can be visualized on a Digital Retinal photo are the central and peripheral retina, optic disc, blood vessels and the macula.
Macular Degeneration
Age related macular degeneration (ARMD) is a progressive eye condition that occurs when a part of the retina called the macula is damaged.
In its early stages, ARMD may not cause symptoms, while more advanced stages of the condition can cause distortion (where straight lines appear wavy), as well as blurring of central vision, which can affect reading, recognising faces, driving and identifying colours.
While ARMD can worsen with time, advancing from more early to advanced stages, it never causes complete blindness, because your peripheral (side) vision remains normal.
ARMD occurs most often in people aged over 50. However, other forms of degeneration of the macula can occur in younger people.
