New Prescription Not Right - Now what

I just went for a full exam and refraction test. My right eye has some
significant correction but my right is minimal.

With my glasses I can see clearly at distance (driving glasses) but my
barely corrected left eye is not clear. I have been back three times and the
doctor says he has no idea why.

He finally told me that some eyes just can't be corrected properly...is this
true.

Alana

 

It is certainly true that sometimes both eyes cannot be corrected to
provide identical acuity, and more often true when there is significant
difference in correction.

In any event, when this occurs, the doctor should attempt to rule out
any eye or neurological pathology and this requires dilation and some
specialized testing. Determining that your eyes are healthy is most
important.

Some information that would be nice to have includes whether or not this
is your first eyeglasses and whether or not your eyes see clearly when
checked separately.

If you are not feeling satisfied by the care and explanation you are
receiving from this doctor, you should consider a second opinion from
another doctor.

LB, O.D.

 

What? Did you do a typo error there?

Maybe you should post the Rx (and any prior ones you may have had).

True, although every case must have a reason/diagnosis. It should not
be an "unknown". And in no case should distance Rx be worse than no Rx
at distance.

 

I'm not sure life is that simple. Sometimes the diagnosis is "unknown".
Not a lot of help.

 

Fortunately, there are few things in eyecare that are completely
unknown. Almost every problem has a reason that has been or can be
succinctly described/defined. If there is a problem that has not yet
been differentially diagnosed, the problem must be persued with vigor
until the unknowns become knowns.

 

You should see an ophthalmologist, and your optometrist should have
told you so. A similar thing happened to me a few years ago. It
turned out that I had a macular hole and needed surgery. If glasses
cannot correct your vision, you are more likely than not to have some
problem. Don't delay!

 

....at whatever cost to the healthcare system until someone provides an
answer that all parties can agree upon, whether it is the true reason
or not. Time to drag out the OCT, the MRI, the wavefront aberrometer,
etc. Then, when all else fails, send them to the neuro-
ophthalmologist. The default diagnosis in the absence of any findings
would be amblyopia. Is there perhaps some evidence, such as one eye
needing correction, suggesting monocularity?

By the way, what did the OP say was the corrected visual acuity in the
offending eye? Does blur mean 20/40, 20/30, 20/25, 20/20- ?

But I agree that if the OP wasn't satisfied with the lack of an
explanation, then they are certainly free to obtain a second opinion.
The optometrist might have come off better if he had offered this.

DrG

 

When I had my first retinal detachment, I was out of town. When I got
back, after surgery and a couple of visits up there, I was treated by my
own OMD. I saw him once a month. I often asked about whether I would
get my vision back. Always the same answer. He didn't know. It would
come back or it wouldn't.

When my son died, again out of town, we had an hour visit with our
pediatrician. I kept hammering him, why did he die? He finally told
me. I could tell instantly that he just made it up. He wasn't there.
He could see that I was really upset (having a child die does that to
you). My son was two weeks short of his first birthday. I don't know
what caused him to die. The diagnosis was, dead.

 

Hi Alana
Everyone else has given good advice and I wanted to add something.
There is an ART to getting an excellent eye exam, and thus, the
correct Rx. Part of it is the skill of the eye doctor, part is good
communication. And, the patient almost has to LEARN how to cooperate
in the exam and help the doctor. It has taken me years of experience
and many eye exams to figure out what to look for on the eye chart.
With any "better or worse" choice, there is a quality to the letters'
images--are they "clearer," or just "darker?" Do they look clear, but
"smeary?" Which letters in a line are easy to read and which are
difficult? Communicating these things to the doctor helps them
troubleshoot the vision problem and get the best Rx for you.

Also, if you have difficulty getting the right Rx, then ask for a
longer appointment for the refraction exam. It really does help and is
worth the extra cost--you don't feel as rushed and neither does the
doctor. There's time to go back and double-check settings, ask
questions, clarify, talk about what glasses/contacts are the best
choice, etc. Finally, if there's a real lack of communication, try
another eye doctor. I am really lucky to have 2 eye doctors in the
same office I go to--they're young, incredibly smart, and they really
work with me.

C66