Eye health monitoring · Melrose Arch, Johannesburg
The eye test is also a health test.
Most people book an eye examination because something has gone blurry. The other half of the appointment is a look at the eye itself — and several of the things worth finding early give no warning at all while they are still easy to keep an eye on.
What fundus photography is, and why
A fundus photograph is a photograph of the back of the eye — the retina, the macula and the head of the optic nerve. It takes moments and it is not uncomfortable. We take one where it is indicated, and it becomes part of your record.
The value of it is almost entirely in the comparison. A single photograph shows what your retina looks like; a series taken over years shows whether anything is changing, and how fast. That is a different and much more useful question, and it is the one a practice you return to can answer. It is also the argument for seeing the same optometrist rather than whoever is available.
What is looked for
Glaucoma
A group of conditions affecting the optic nerve, most often associated with pressure inside the eye. The reason it is checked routinely is that in its common form it does its early damage to peripheral vision, without pain and without anything obvious going wrong — which means it is typically found during an examination rather than reported by the patient. Family history raises the risk, so it is worth mentioning if you know of any.
Macular degeneration
Age-related change at the macula, the small central part of the retina responsible for detail — reading, faces, number plates. Usually noticed as distortion or a blur in the centre rather than at the edges. Where we see signs of it, the useful thing we hold is the photographic record: what the macula looked like two and four years ago.
Diabetic eye disease
Diabetes can affect the small blood vessels of the retina, often before vision changes at all. Regular examination is part of standard diabetic care, and a photograph of the retina is how change is tracked between visits. If you are diabetic, say so when booking — it affects what we look at and how often you should come back.
Dry eye
Gritty, tired, watery-then-sore eyes, typically worse late in the day and worse on screens. It is extremely common in air-conditioned offices and it is one of the few things on this page that people do notice and then put up with for years. It is worth raising; it is usually manageable.
Keratoconus
A condition where the cornea thins and changes shape, usually emerging in the teens or twenties, and one where the right contact lens can make a very large difference to usable vision. Fitting for it is specialist work and takes more than one appointment. Ask us and we will tell you whether that is something we do here or refer on for.
What we do, and what we do not
Optik is an optometry practice. We examine, we monitor, we keep the record, and we manage what falls within optometric scope. Where something needs an ophthalmologist, a GP or a specialist, we say so and refer — promptly, and with the photographs and history to hand so you are not starting from nothing.
Nothing on this page is a diagnosis or a substitute for an examination. If your vision has changed suddenly, or you have pain, flashes, a new shower of floaters, or a curtain or shadow moving across your vision, that is not a page to read — phone us on 011 684 2833, or go to an emergency department if you cannot reach us.