What Happens During an Eye Examination

An eye examination is comfortable, thorough, and tailored to your needs.

During your visit, we will:

  1. Discuss Your Visual History

         

  • Your visual/ocular history: Past eye conditions, surgeries (e.g., LASIK), injuries, current vision complaints (blurry vision, headaches, dry eyes, floaters), how long issues have lasted, and what makes them better or worse.
  • Symptoms: Any eye-related problems like redness, pain, light sensitivity, double vision, or changes in vision.
  • Lifestyle needs: Your daily visual demands — screen time (computers/phones), driving, reading, sports/hobbies, occupation (e.g., lots of near work or outdoor exposure), and preferences for glasses, contacts, or other corrections.
  • Medical history: Overall health conditions (e.g., diabetes, high blood pressure, autoimmune issues), medications, allergies, and family history of eye diseases (like glaucoma, macular degeneration, or cataracts) — since many systemic conditions affect the eyes.
  • Any concerns: Questions you have about eye health, preventive care, or specific worries.

2. Measure Visual Acuity


   We’ll guide you through reading from a chart to gently assess how clearly your eyes   focus at different distances

3. Determine Your Prescription

After gathering your history and doing initial objective measurements (like with an autorefractor), the optometrist  uses specialized tools to precisely determine (or "refine") the lens power needed to correct refractive errors such as:

  • Myopia (nearsightedness)
  • Hyperopia (farsightedness)
  • Astigmatism
  • Presbyopia (age-related near vision changes)

The primary piece of specialized equipment here is the phoropter — that big, mask-like device with dozens of lenses that flips in front of your eyes. (Sometimes a trial frame with individual lenses is used instead.)

How this process works

  1. Objective starting point — Often begins with an autorefractor (a machine that estimates your prescription automatically by analyzing how light reflects off your retina) or retinoscopy (where the doctor shines a light into your eye and observes the reflex).
  2. Subjective refinement — You look through the phoropter at an eye chart (usually letters or numbers at a distance, like 6 meters away).
    • The optometrist switches lenses in small increments (e.g., "Which is better: lens 1 or lens 2?").
    • You give feedback like "better," "worse," "the same," or "clearer" to guide adjustments to sphere (overall power), cylinder (astigmatism correction), and axis.
    • This continues until the vision is as crisp and comfortable as possible — minimizing blur, eye strain, headaches, or distortion.
  3. Near vision check — For reading or computer work, they may refine an "add" power (for bifocals/progressives) or check binocular vision for comfort.
  4. Final tweaks — They might test different options for balance between eyes, or simulate real-life tasks (e.g., night vision or glare).

This interactive "which is better?" process is what makes the prescription personalized — it's not just numbers from a machine, but refined based on your real-world feedback for optimal clarity (sharpness) and comfort (no strain or fatigue).

Modern variations might include digital phoropters or advanced wavefront tech (like in some premium exams) for even greater precision, reducing higher-order aberrations that affect night vision or contrast.

4. Assess Eye Health


We examine the internal and external structures of your eyes to detect early signs of disease.

5. Provide Personalised Recommendations
Based on your results, we advise on lenses, coatings, or further care if needed.

Our goal is not just clear vision, but comprehensive eye health.