Who is an optometrist, and what do they do?
An optometrist is a medical professional responsible for providing primary vision care. They are not medical doctors but have a license to practice optometry. The field of optometry includes:
- Practicing eye exams
- Writing prescriptions for eyeglasses and contact lenses
- Pointing out any abnormalities in the eye
They can also help treat certain eye diseases. An optometrist specializes in multiple activities within the primary eye care domain, these include:
- Conducting vision tests and eye exams
- Prescriptions and fitting of corrective lenses
- Identification and monitoring of eye conditions
- Treatment of eye conditions that may be related to other diseases like diabetes
- Vision therapy and low-vision aids
What are the educational qualifications of an optometrist?
An optometrist completes four years of education from an optometry school and earns a Doctor of Optometry (OD) degree. The educational training includes the following steps:
- Earning a bachelor's degree in science or pre-med
- Complete and pass the Optometry Admission Test (OAT)
- Get into a four-year Doctor of Optometry program
- Earn a doctoral degree (OD)
- Clear the National Board of Examiners in Optometry (NBEO) exams
- Get a license to practice optometry
Once they receive a license, an optometrist can choose to complete a specialty fellowship or consider getting additional clinical training.
What are the services provided by an optometrist?
Getting a routine eye exam every year is advised. This exam could include refilling an eyeglass or contact lens prescription, providing medication and treatment for specific eye conditions, etc. Unlike an ophthalmologist, an optometrist doesn't deal with surgical requirements and is not responsible for treating severe eye conditions.
Optometrists typically provide the following services:
- Routine or annual eye exams
- Providing education on eye health
- Diagnosis of eye conditions
- Prescriptions for contact lenses, glasses, and other visual aids
- Minor surgical procedures and medical treatments
- Post-surgical eye care
Optometrists can provide specified medications for certain eye conditions. Based on the rules and regulations of individual state legislations, optometrists can also perform minor surgeries. These procedures include the removal of foreign bodies, laser eye surgery, and minor surgical interventions.
When can you visit an optometrist?
Regular eye care is essential, whether you wear eyeglasses or contact lenses. It would be best to take regular exams to detect eye conditions and diseases early to preserve your vision. You can visit an optometrist for any of the following reasons:
- If you think you require corrective lenses, contacts, or eyeglasses
- If you have a chronic disease like diabetes that has a more significant correlation with eye diseases
- If you have a family history of vision loss or eye disease
- If you require a medical prescription for your eyes
Additionally, you must visit an optometrist if you are facing any of the following symptoms:
- Pain in the eyes
- Blurry vision or double vision
- Vision impairment
- Irritation or redness in the eyes
- Seeing floaters or specks that float before your eyes
- Flashes of light
In some instances, an optometrist may further recommend you to an ophthalmologist if you have a critical eye condition that cannot improve with basic primary care. Optometrists and ophthalmologists are eye care specialists; however, they perform different functions and medical aids.
Optometrists are not licensed to perform certain eye surgeries and may recommend you to an ophthalmologist if needed. Ophthalmologists are medical doctors (MDs). They have attended medical schools, are qualified to diagnose or treat specific conditions, and can perform eye surgeries.
When should you get your eyes examined?
You must check your eyes and vision regularly, which will help an optometrist prevent and detect any problems. Given below is a brief understanding of how you should plan your eye examinations, depending on your age:
- Kids: You should take your kid for an eye examination in the first year. After this, an eye exam yearly or once in two years should be enough.
- Adults (18-55 years): Adults should get their eyes examined every one or two years.
- Adults older than 55 years: They should get their eyes examined yearly.
If you wear contact lenses or eyeglasses, your eye examinations should be more often. You can also consult your optometrist to determine the frequency of eye examinations.
Recommended natural ways to improve and maintain your eye health
Our eyes experience ample strain and tiredness from daily use of digital screens, long-distance driving, reading, and lack of sleep. Besides going for routine eye checkups with the best optometrist near you, there are many ways you can take care of your eyes. Follow the below-given tips to prevent diseases and enjoy good eye health lifelong:
- Quit smoking to lower your risk of associated issues such as age-related macular degeneration, cataracts, vision loss, and blindness.
- Be aware of eye problems that run in your family and take precautions earlier on. There are more than 350 known hereditary eye diseases, including albinism, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), color blindness, cataracts, glaucoma, and night blindness.
- Eat a diet rich in nutrients, which helps promote eye health. It includes vitamins A, B1, C, and E, zinc, carotenoids such as lutein and zeaxanthin, and Omega-3 fatty acids.
- Exercise daily to maintain overall health and control diabetes, obesity, hypertension, high cholesterol, and other health conditions that cause eye problems.
- Wear sunglasses outdoors to safeguard your eyes from harmful ultraviolet sun rays.
- Use protective eyewear when performing activities such as sports, repairs, and science experiments that involve the risk of eye damage.
- Follow the 20-20-20 rule if your nature of work involves excessive screen time. It means every 20 minutes, look away from the screen and observe something 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
- Keep your digital devices at least an arm's length away from your eyes to prevent eye strain. Enlarge the font size, reduce the screen brightness, and adjust other settings to make viewing comfortable for your eyes.
- Stop the habit of rubbing your eyes too much.
- Wash your hands before using your contact lenses.
- Clean your eyeglasses regularly.
Finding the best optometrist near you in Cincinnati, OH
The best eye care requires the necessary optometrist support. If you are looking for the best optometrist in Ohio and Cincinnati, Zocdoc can help.
Zocdoc is a search engine comprising millions of doctors in and around your area. It can recommend you the best doctor according to your needs and preferences. You can add multiple filters when you input a search query on Zocdoc, including your locality, specialty, appointment slots, zip code details, and insurance carrier plans. Every healthcare provider on Zocdoc has a personalized profile. This profile includes their educational qualifications, expertise, years of practice, and additional certifications.
You can also go through the verified reviews given by their previous patients. These are authentic and recent reviews posted by patients to help you make an informed decision. You can organize an in-person or virtual appointment once you have chosen the best optometrist near you.
Zocdoc is easy to use, secure, and completely free.
Optometrist statistics in Cincinnati, OH
Unfortunately, the number of Ohioans who experience visual loss has been rising even though 50% of all blindness is preventable. In 2020, Prevent Blindness reported that there were approximately 1,729,883 Ohioans affected by disorders that impair vision due to a rise in the aging population. Age-related macular degeneration, cataracts, glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy are the main contributing factors (AMD).
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 12 million people above 40 have vision impairment in the United States. This data can be further broken down, including 1 million people who are blind, 3 million who have vision impairment even after correction, and another 8 million with visual issues due to uncorrected refractive errors.
Data from IBIS states that there are approximately 166,576 optometrists employed in the US as of 2023. If we consider the growth of Optometrists in the United States, the average annual increase was about 2.9% from the years 2018 and 2023.
Sources
WebMD
Cleveland Clinic
Healthline[1]
Healthline[2]
Healthline[3]
Prevent Blindness
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
IBIS World
Weill Cornell Medicine
Versant Health
Assil Gaur Eye Institute of Los Angeles
