When you need eye care, the first step is finding the type of doctor who can help you with your problem. The two basic types of eye care physicians are optometrists and ophthalmologists. Many people only require optometrist care. Optometrists can administer vision tests and help you get the vision aids you need to see clearly. Ophthalmologists are specialists who can diagnose more significant eye conditions. They can even perform surgery if necessary. Here are three reasons you may need to utilize ophthalmology services:
1. You have something stuck in your eye.
Everyone has gotten an eyelash stuck in their eye before. The uncomfortable feeling can bother you until you flush it out with water. Unfortunately, it's possible for other foreign objects to become lodged in your eye as well. If you have a rock, piece of glass, or another object stuck in your eye, don't try to remove it using tweezers or your fingers. If it won't come out when you rinse your eye with water or saline, you may need to have it surgically removed. An ophthalmologist can carefully extract the object from your cornea in a way that will prevent further damage to your eye.
2. You are experiencing vision loss.
It's common for a person's eyesight to gradually worsen over time until it eventually stabilizes. This isn't usually a cause for concern. However, rapid vision loss or vision loss that occurs in select parts of your vision may be caused by an underlying condition. If you are experiencing a worrying degree of vision loss, you should make an appointment with an ophthalmologist. Your vision loss may be caused by cataracts, an infection, or even a tumor. Once the cause of your vision loss is diagnosed, your doctor will be able to take the appropriate steps to help you.
3. You would like to have your vision surgically corrected.
Glasses and contact lenses are the two primary methods of adjusting people's vision. The right lenses can help you see clearly so you can drive and participate fully in daily life. However, some people find glasses or contacts to be too much of a hassle. Athletes, pilots, and other people who rely heavily on their eyes may be disqualified from their jobs due to imperfect vision. In these cases, laser eye surgery can offer a permanent solution. If you would like to have your vision corrected with laser surgery, an ophthalmologist can help you.
When you look in the mirror and focus on your eyes, what do you see? Hopefully you see a strong and vibrant person — someone who enjoys and embraces life. Hopefully you also see a set of healthy eyes, although that can be tough to determine just with a glance in the mirror. Eyes can look healthy on the surface when really something sinister is going on inside of them. That's one reason why visiting the eye doctor is so important.
If you would like to learn more about eye health, optometrists, and even contact lenses, you've come to the right place. We curated the articles on this website very carefully to provide you with the best information on these topics.