Eyeglass technology has changed DRAMATICALLY over the past 2 decades since I’ve graduated Optometry school. ‘Back in the day’, you would give a patient the Rx and they could fill it a almost any optical location and, in relative terms, it would be made without much variation from location to location. But with modern optics and digital spectacle technology, your Dr.’s prescription is only a portion of your final visual outcome.
When we measure for a patient’s prescription, we check for near and far sightedness, astigmatism, and reading power. These measurements give the overall vision prescription, but how it is then fabricated and made to the patient’s specific needs is a completely different story. Simply putting these #’s into a online form will give you adequate vision correction, but that is only part of the story.
There are numerous and specific additional measurements that a trained optician will assist you with to achieve your maximal visual potential. Not only are the additional measurements critical to your final visual outcome, but being off by only 1mm can be the difference between seeing clearly and comfortably. In addition to the measurements, there is also a significant number of customized options that you need to discuss with your optician, as ‘one lens doesn’t fit all’. In fact, we can now customize your computer eyewear depending if you work on 1, 2, or even 3 monitors. Your drive-wear can have so many different options, tints, polarizations, and UV protections, that you truly need to make an educated decision when finalizing your eyewear. And no-line bifocals have hundreds of variations that need to also be fabricated specifically to your personal visual wants and needs.
So the next time your thinking of filling your Rx online or with a discount chain optical, just consider how many options your final glasses may missing out on. You deserve to see the world in HD!
