Contact Lens Eye Exam

If you are interested in getting contact lenses, you’ll need to let your eye care practitioner know at the beginning of your appointment that that is something you are considering. A contact lens exam will generally take longer than a regular exam because you have to be properly fitted for the lenses.

After examining the overall health of your eyes, your eye doctor will most likely have some questions for you. He or she will need to know why you want contacts, if you know of any certain problems with your eyes, and what you are hoping to gain from your appointment. Your fitting and whether or not your doctor thinks you are a good candidate for contact lenses will be based upon the information that you provide.

Over the course of your eye exam, the eye care practiotioner will perform all the necessary tests to judge the general health and vision of your eyes. Once your optometrist has all the information that he or she needs, you will be given your prescription. Generally, you will not be able to buy contacts from anywhere without a prescription.

To give you a proper fitting for your lenses, the eye doctor will measure the curvature of your eyes and check other factors that influence the way that the lenses will fit.

Often times, people are prone to eye dryness and the eye care practitioner has to be sure to prescribe a lens that will not aggravate that condition. Also, your cornea will need to be tested to be sure that you don’t have any severe problems that could cause keep you from being able to wear the lenses.

After a proper fit has been found, your eye care practitioner will usually give you a pair of trial lenses to try for a couple of weeks to see how they fit once your eyes have adjusted to them.

Don’t be frustrated if it takes several trial pairs before you find the perfect lens for you. You want to make sure that the lens you choose corrects your vision, fits comfortably, and is not causing any damage to your corneas.

When you are given your trial contacts, the eye care practitioner will show you how to carefully inspect each lens for damage, scratches, tears, or other defects before you put it in your eye. It’s extremely important that none of these defects are present so you should make a habit of inspecting your lenses every time you put them in. The eye doctor or one of his staff will check to make sure the lenses meet the requirements prescribed for your eyes and that you are happy with them before you leave the office.

Generally, an eye care practitioner will prescribe the brands of contacts and solutions that are the latest and have proven to be the best for most people. He or she will usually go over different brands with you just for your information and will also discuss which solutions you should or shouldn’t use.

The solution you use can make a big difference in your contacts as it can cause irritation. Often times, problems with contacts can be fixed simply by changing which solution you use. The trial lenses and solution will help you determine what works best for you.

Follow up appointments are just as important as your initial visit. Once you’ve been fitted and found your perfect lenses, you will need to go back within 2 to 3 weeks so that your eye care practitioner can check your eyes and lenses again to make sure that all is well and no damage is occurring. After that, your eye doctor will let you know how often you need to go in for follow ups and it is important that you do so to make sure that your lenses are working properly and that your eyes are as healthy as possible.