Your Eye Doctor can be important to your overall health and wellness. Finding the right medical professional means getting recommendations from trusted friends and colleagues and reading reviews online.
To become an Eye Doctor, you must complete at least 12 years of schooling and training—four years of undergraduate work, four of medical school, and a residency in ophthalmology. Contact Dry Eye Center of Maryland now!

Your eye doctor will perform several tests to check your visual acuity or sharpness of vision near and far. He may also test your peripheral vision, color vision, and depth perception. The first step in most eye exams involves shining a bright light into your eyes to see how your pupils react by shrinking or widening. This is called a refraction assessment and it helps determine the lens power you need to correct any refractive error (nearsightedness, farsightedness or astigmatism).
During visual acuity testing, your eye doctor will ask you to read letters from a projected or hand-held Snellen chart that get smaller as you move away from the chart. The test measures your distance and near vision and can help him rule out conditions such as glaucoma. Your eye doctor will also measure the quality of your near vision by having you look at a chart with small letters that move up and down. He will evaluate how well you can follow the moving letters and decide on a contact lens or eyeglass prescription for your needs.
Other tests may include an eye movement or ocular motility assessment. This checks how well your eyes change focus, move together and work as a team. It can reveal problems such as strabismus or extraocular muscle dysfunction and can also detect saccadic dysfunction, which is the inability to rapidly move your eyes from one target to another.
A color blindness screening is often performed early on in a comprehensive eye exam using Ishihara plates. This can help identify hereditary color vision deficiencies and can alert the doctor to possible underlying health issues such as diabetes or vascular disease.
Close examination of the anterior eye structures and ocular adnexa is usually performed using a slit lamp, which looks somewhat like a large upright microscope that has a fixed illumination source. The slit lamp allows the doctor to view the iris, pupil and lens at high magnification and can be useful in identifying various health problems such as cataracts and glaucoma.
Contact Lenses
The eye doctor can prescribe contact lenses to correct various vision problems. These include nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism. There are also contacts that can enhance the color of your eyes or even change their color entirely. Cosmetic contact lenses, which are sold without a prescription at boutiques and even tattoo parlors, can make quite the fashion statement. However, they can also increase your risk of serious eye problems. It is best to speak with your eye care professional before buying decorative contact lenses.
Most of the time, the eye care practitioner will suggest a soft lens that is comfortable and easy to insert. They will also provide information about proper lens wearing and care. It is important to follow their instructions for rinsing, disinfecting and storing your contact lenses. These steps help prevent the buildup of bacteria that can lead to eye infections.
There are some types of contact lenses that are worn as daily wear and others that can be left in overnight (extended wear). The type of lens your optometrist recommends will depend on the type of vision correction you need, your lifestyle and eye health.
Contact lenses are made of different materials, including silicone polymers. The most common type of contact lens is a soft, oxygen permeable, water-retaining lens. Most people can wear these contact lenses for many years without a problem. There are also rigid gas permeable (RGP) lenses. These are stiffer than soft lenses and allow for better oxygen flow to the cornea, which can offer clearer vision for some types of correction. There are also hybrid lenses, which combine the durability of RGP with the softness of silicone for added comfort and safety.
Regardless of what type of contact lenses you use, they should always be clean and properly stored in a multipurpose solution that is recommended by the eye care practitioner. It is also a good idea to keep some extra solutions and a storage case on hand in case you need to remove, clean or replace a lens. Finally, be gentle with your contact lenses, as they are medical devices that can rip or tear if handled roughly.
Eyeglasses
Eyeglasses correct vision by adjusting the light rays that enter the eye to form an image on the retina. When the eyes are healthy, this image should be clear and sharp. But if you have a refractive error (farsightedness, nearsightedness, astigmatism or presbyopia), the light rays are not focused correctly on the retina and the result is blurry vision.
Eyeglasses are easy to wear and don’t require special cleaning solutions or frequent changes. There are many styles and colors to choose from, so you can find the frames that best match your face.
Glasses are available in a wide range of prescription strengths, and you can also get anti-reflective lenses to eliminate unsightly reflections. You can also opt for multifocal or trifocal lenses, which have two or more optical powers within the lens to help you see at different distances.
For most people, glasses are the most effective option for improving their vision. If you need correction to see clearly, your eye care professional will give you a prescription for an appropriate strength of glasses. You should always use high quality glasses. Never buy them online or with an app – these can’t provide the accurate measurements required for an excellent prescription.
Your eye doctor can also provide you with bifocal or trifocal lenses that have multiple prescriptions in the same lens. These are helpful for those over 40 who are experiencing difficulty focusing on close objects due to presbyopia. The bifocal lenses are divided into sections and have an upper part for distance vision, and a lower part for near vision. Today’s multifocal lenses are made so the line between the separate prescription areas is invisible.
When wearing your eyeglasses, be sure to set them on a flat surface like a table. This will ensure the ear pieces rest comfortably on your ears and that both lenses are parallel with each other. If one lens seems elevated above the other, it may be a sign of a misalignment and can be corrected with a small adjustment by your eye doctor. Be sure to visit your eye care specialist regularly for an updated prescription and routine examinations.
Surgery
For those with permanent eye conditions, surgery is often the best option. These procedures might repair injuries, treat diseases or correct birth defects. They also can help restore vision after cataracts, glaucoma or retinal detachment. Surgery may be done under local or general anesthesia, depending on the procedure and your needs.
Before surgery, your eyes will be numbed with drops. Your surgeon will place a suction ring on your eye to prevent blinking and an eyelid holder to keep your eye open. Then your doctor will use a device like a microkeratome or laser to create a paper-thin flap in the cornea tissue. Once this is painlessly peeled back, your doctor will reshape the cornea with laser technology to fix the refractive error. They will then put the flap back in place, and you will see better immediately afterward.
There are many other types of eye surgeries. Your ophthalmologist will decide the right one for you based on your medical history, detailed eye examination and other tests. They will also explain the risks and benefits of each type of eye surgery.
Some eye surgeries are quick, such as those to remove cataracts or correct astigmatism. Others take longer, such as those to treat glaucoma. You will need to discuss these with your eye doctor and determine the time frame you want to schedule.
Your eye doctor may recommend a special diet before eye surgery to prevent nausea and vomiting afterward. You will also need to have a ride home after the procedure and someone to stay with you for a few hours while you recover from the anesthesia.
After surgery, your vision might be a little foggy and blurry as the anesthesia wears off. You may also experience pain that might last for several hours. Your ophthalmologist might give you pain medications to help you feel comfortable. Then, your eyes will begin to heal. Be sure to follow your doctor’s instructions after surgery and make regular appointments with your ophthalmologist. Getting your eyes checked regularly is the best way to avoid many common eye problems, such as cataracts and glaucoma.