Tools & Resources

• Innovations In Vision
• How to Pick Good Sunglasses
• Preventing Eye Fatigue
• Floaters: Should You Worry?
• Using Eyedrops and Ointment
• How Glaucoma Affects Vision

Eye Tests

• Tonometry: A test that measures pressure in the eye, called intraocular pressure. Tonometry is used to check for glaucoma.
• Slit lamp examination: A physician or optometrist shines a vertical slit of light across your eye while examining through a microscope. This general exam can detect many eye problems.
• Fundoscopic exam: Dilating drops first widen the pupil. By shining bright light in the back of the eye, the examiner can view the retina.
• Refraction: If vision is impaired, a series of lenses are placed before the eyes to determine the right corrective lens prescription.
• Visual acuity test: Reading ever-smaller-sized letters across the room identifies distance vision problems. Reading up-close can identify problems with near vision.
• Fluorescein angiography: A fluorescent dye is used to take a sequence of retinal images.
• Regular adult eye exam: This collection of tests may include the ones mentioned above plus others, such as eye movement.

Eye Treatments

• Contact lenses and glasses: Glasses or contact lenses correct refractive errors such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism.
  
• LASIK (laser assisted in situ keratomileusis): A doctor creates a thin flap in the cornea with a precise cutting device or a laser, following which, an excimer laser reshapes the cornea, improving nearsightedness, excessive farsightedness, and astigmatism.
  
• Radial keratotomy (RK): A series of small incisions are made in the cornea to correct nearsightedness. Radial keratotomy is rarely used today.
  
• Photorefractive keratectomy (PRK): A doctor rubs off the surface cells from the cornea, then uses a laser to improve nearsightedness. The corneal cells grow back and the eye heals very much like a corneal abrasion.
  
• LASEK (laser epithelial keratomileusis): Similar to PRK, in which a flap is cut into the corneal substance. Instead of a surgical flap, though, the topmost layer of cornea cells is retracted or removed after which a laser is used to reshape the cornea.
  
• Artificial tears: Eyedrops with similar composition to natural tears, used to treat dry or irritated eyes.
  
• Cyclosporine eye drops (Restasis): Dry eye is often associated with microscopic inflammation, and anti-inflammatory eye drops (like cyclosporine) can often help.
  
• Laser photocoagulation: A doctor uses a laser to treat parts of the retina with poor circulation or to treat abnormal blood vessels directly. Laser photocoagulation is most often done for diabetic retinopathy but can also be used for sealing retinal tears.
  
• Cataract surgery: The cloudy cataract is removed from the lens and replaced by a manmade lens.