3 Little-Know Things An Optometrist Can Tell You During A Medical Eye Exam
There are a lot of good reasons to get a medical eye exam on a regular basis to protect your eyesight and the health of your eyes in general. However, an optometrist can see a lot of things that you cannot see when you look in the mirror or at your body when they peer deep into the biological makeup of the eye. In fact, there are some things your eye doctor can tell you that you may not expect they would be able to see.
They can tell if you've had high blood pressure.
When your blood pressure gets too high, it can actually change the blood vessels that surround the retina, which means high blood pressure can affect your vision. However, when you go in for a medical eye exam, the optometrist is going to get a close-up look at the retina and the blood vessels in that area. Therefore, they can usually tell whether you have had issues with high blood pressure in the past or even if you have high blood pressure while you are sitting there for the exam.
They can tell if the medications you're taking are affecting your vision.
Medications can affect your entire body, including your vision and eye health, especially if you have been on certain prescriptions for a long time. For example, people who take antidepressants sometimes have issues with focusing on things up close, and people who frequently take pain relievers sometimes have problems with excessively dry eyes. If the medications you take on a regular basis are affecting your eyes, this is something you definitely need to know so your regular physician can make any necessary adjustments to protect your vision.
They can tell you if there are signs of diabetes in your eyes.
Diabetes is known to affect the eyes, but most patients do not know that their optometrist can look at their eyes and tell them if there are signs they have been experiencing high blood sugar levels. When your sugar levels get too high, it can cause tiny blood vessels to swell and burst, which will leave tiny blood spots in the retinal area. These red splotches can be difficult to see unless they cluster together, but during a medical eye exam, your optometrist will use equipment to view every tiny flaw and blood vessel. Therefore, they can often see signs that you cannot yet see in your eyes.
If it's been a while since you had an eye exam, schedule an appointment at a local clinic like Family Eye Care to get your eyes checked out.
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