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Nit: An optometrist is usually fine if all you need is a refraction. It's when you're dealing with something that requires medical intervention (glaucoma, pars

Nit: An optometrist is usually fine if all you need is a refraction. It's when you're dealing with something that requires medical intervention (glaucoma, pars planitis, etc.) that you need to shell out for an ophthalmologist. An optometrist can still catch that stuff, but will need to refer you for treatment.

checkdigit15 8y ago
This is a good point and also worth pointing out (in the US at least) that most ophthalmologists will be covered under your medical insurance not your eye insurance (if any) because they are medical doctors. I was getting my contact lens exam/fitting recently and the optometrist wanted me to get something checked later by an ophthalmologist. He said it was probably nothing to worry about but made it clear that it was outside his scope of expertise to diagnose or make medical recommendations.
- leeoniya 8y ago
  my wife is an optometrist. it's amazing the stuff she finds. she's found brain tumors and literally saved people's lives by referring them early to a neuro-ophthalmologist when they came in just to update their prescription. many latent systemic problems are also clearly visible in the eye: hypertension, diabetes, etc.
- amalcon 8y ago
  > This is a good point and also worth pointing out (in the US at least) that most ophthalmologists will be covered under your medical insurance not your eye insurance (if any) because they are medical doctors. Make sure they code it correctly! I once had a rather large bill because the ophthalmologist's office accidentally billed me under a "routine" code that my medical insurance didn't cover. It took several hours of phone calls with the insurer and the ophthalmologist to get it corrected.
poopchute 8y ago
Just echoing this, (Canada) my optometrist caught my glaucoma early using that machine that shoots a burst of air at your eye. He referred me to an opthalmologist who said there isn't any damage yet but gave me a prescription for some eye drops that reduce eye pressure. I'm only 27 and don't have any other medical issues, so it was a but of a surprise

checkdigit15 8y ago

This is a good point and also worth pointing out (in the US at least) that most ophthalmologists will be covered under your medical insurance not your eye insurance (if any) because they are medical doctors. I was getting my contact lens exam/fitting recently and the optometrist wanted me to get something checked later by an ophthalmologist. He said it was probably nothing to worry about but made it clear that it was outside his scope of expertise to diagnose or make medical recommendations.

leeoniya 8y ago
my wife is an optometrist. it's amazing the stuff she finds. she's found brain tumors and literally saved people's lives by referring them early to a neuro-ophthalmologist when they came in just to update their prescription. many latent systemic problems are also clearly visible in the eye: hypertension, diabetes, etc.
amalcon 8y ago
> This is a good point and also worth pointing out (in the US at least) that most ophthalmologists will be covered under your medical insurance not your eye insurance (if any) because they are medical doctors. Make sure they code it correctly! I once had a rather large bill because the ophthalmologist's office accidentally billed me under a "routine" code that my medical insurance didn't cover. It took several hours of phone calls with the insurer and the ophthalmologist to get it corrected.

poopchute 8y ago

Just echoing this, (Canada) my optometrist caught my glaucoma early using that machine that shoots a burst of air at your eye. He referred me to an opthalmologist who said there isn't any damage yet but gave me a prescription for some eye drops that reduce eye pressure. I'm only 27 and don't have any other medical issues, so it was a but of a surprise