Check Your Vision for Problems

During our routine vision exams, we test for much more than just your glasses or contact lens prescription. Since many people have vision and/or eye health problems they are not aware of, we thoroughly evaluate several aspects of your eyes.

Some Vision Insurances we accept are BlueCare, EyeMed (Access & Insight), March Vision Care, Spectera, VCP & VSP. Call Brooks A. Harris, OD today.

Common Vision Disorders We Often Evaluate and Treat

• Alignment disorders (from weak muscles) 
• Amblyopia
• Astigmatism 
• Focusing disorders 
• Farsightedness
• Nearsightedness 
• Lazy eye 
• Presbyopia

Dr. Harris has been thoroughly evaluating and treating many vision and eye health disorders in Ripley since 1985 and continues to perform the “Routine Procedures” below:

Visual Acuities - Let us see how well you are able to see distant and nearby objects, either without glasses or contact lenses or with your current prescription. If the vision is blurry after refraction, you may need special tests to look for eye health problems.

Confrontation Fields - This is a quick screening of your side vision to see if you have developed nerve damage from a tumor, aneurysm, stroke, or hemorrhage in your eyes or your brain. Special tests may be required if damage is suspected.

Pupil Evaluation (Size and Reaction to Light) - This test can also help detect nerve damage in your eye or brain.

Convergence Test - This tests your ability to keep your eyes aligned when reading. We treat with special glasses and/or exercises.

Pursuits and Rotations - This tests for nerve damage in the 6 muscles around your eyes, which control eye movements.

Refraction for Distance Viewing - This measures the glasses or contact lens prescription needed to provide clear vision at far.

Refraction for Near Viewing - This measures the prescription needed to provide clear and comfortable vision at near.

Tonometry - This measures the pressure in your eyes. High eye pressure increases your risk for glaucoma. (This test is mostly only needed for adults.)

Biomicroscopy (Slit Lamp) - This instrument magnifies the front of your eye between 16 and 25 times to look for signs of disorders such as pink eye, allergies, dry eye, foreign bodies, cataracts, glaucoma, and many more.

Ophthalmoscopy - This allows a good view of the back of the eye to look for tumors, tears, holes, and hemorrhages caused by an injury or disorders such as glaucoma, high nearsightedness, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and more. Dilation of the pupils is often required (but not always). Ask us about our ultra-wide field Optomap which can view up to 87% of your retina in one scan and often without dilation.

Tests Only Needed Once or Just Occasionally

Auto-Refractor - Gives a computerized reading of how your eyes are focusing. By giving a numerical reading of your astigmatism, farsightedness, and/or nearsightedness, it gives us a starting point in determining your glasses prescription.

Present Glasses Prescription Verified - Allows us to compare your past glasses prescription to your new one to demonstrate change.

Working Distances Measured - Knowing your working distances helps in determining your near, or bifocal, powers when needed.

Stereopsis Testing - Helps detect when the two eyes are not working well together, as with crossed-eyes or pathology.

Color Vision Test for Congenital Deficiencies in Color Discrimination - Detects color vision problems you are born with.

Retinoscopy at Far - A method of determining the glasses prescription for far without the patient saying anything (mainly for kids).

Retinoscopy at Near - To determine the glasses prescription for near to see if bifocals are needed for kids or those mentally impaired.

Pupillary Distance (PD) Measurements - The distance between your two eyes. This test is needed to make sure you are looking through the optical center in your glasses to avoid eye strain. The PD changes about 1 mm/year as kids grow taller but rarely changes in adults.

Contact Lens Fit Evaluation - This helps us detect eye health problems caused by dirty or improperly fitting contact lenses, and helps Dr. Harris update your contact lens prescription. This service needs to be performed every year for all contact lens wearers to prevent damage to the eyes.