Eye Examinations
Regular eye examinations are essential to monitor and protect your eye health and vision.
Not only do they check whether your vision has changed and your prescription needs updating, but they can also identify many early signs of common eye conditions like macular degeneration, glaucoma, and cataracts, which often have no obvious symptoms until their advanced stages. This means the various tests our optometrist carries out are often the only way to identify potential issues, allowing action to be taken as early as possible to preserve your vision.
Our clinical expertise combined with the advanced testing equipment we’ve invested in means every eye examination we carry out goes as in-depth as possible.
About our eye exams
We offer both private eye exams as well as NHS eye exams. Free eye exams are available to:
- Children under 18 in full-time education
- Children under the age of 16
- Adults over 60
- Partially sighted individuals
- Diabetics
- Glaucoma sufferers
- People aged 40 and over with a close relative who has glaucoma
There are further criteria that may make you eligible for an NHS eye exam, for example if you receive certain benefits e.g. Universal credit. Please do get in touch for more information on eligibility for free eye exams.
What’s involved in an eye exam?
We always tailor each eye exam to a patient’s individual needs. They usually take around 30 minutes, however this may be extended if our optometrist feels more time is needed to carry out additional checks for your peace of mind.
As a standard, our comprehensive eye exams include:
- A discussion of your general and ocular health history
- Measuring your prescription and visual acuity
- Visual fields testing for peripheral vision
- A binocular assessment to see how well your eyes are working together
- A non-invasive intraocular pressure test
- State of the art retinal imaging to examine the back of your eyes.
We also offer a 3D OCT, which is advanced retinal scanning technology. This can be added to your eye exam for an additional fee and allows us to obtain a complete, more in-depth view of the back of the eye.
All the tests will be explained as they are carried out, so you can understand what exactly is being checked.
At the end of the examination, our optometrist will talk you through any changes in your vision and retinal imaging results, and our team can then help you choose new glasses or discuss contact lenses if your vision needs correcting.
How often to have an eye exam
Even if you think your eyes are healthy and your vision is perfect, it’s important for both adults and children to keep up with their regular eye examinations.
National guidelines state that children aged 15 and under, and adults aged over 70, diabetics and those with glaucoma should have an eye exam every year, while most people aged 16-69 should have eye tests every 2 years. However, there are exceptions, and our optometrist will advise you on how often you should be seen once they’ve assessed your eyes.
