Comprehensive eye and Vision Examinations

Ophthalmologist checking the eye — Munster, IN — Munster Eye Care Associates

Annual medical and wellness eye exams, including contact lens examinations, are important to preventive eye health care. Many eye and vision problems have no obvious signs or symptoms. As a result, individuals are often unaware that problems exist. Early diagnosis and treatment of eye and vision problems are important for maintaining good vision and eye health and, when possible, preventing vision loss. Call Munster Eye Care Associates, P.C. today.

  • Visual Acuity

    Reading charts are often used to measure visual acuity. Visual acuity measurements evaluate how each eye is seeing. You are asked to read letters on distance and near reading charts as part of the testing. The results of visual acuity testing are written as a fraction, such as 20/40.


    When testing distance vision, the top number in the fraction is the standard distance at which testing is done, twenty feet. The bottom number is the smallest letter size you were able to read. A person with 20/40 visual acuity would have to get within 20 feet of a letter that should be seen at 40 feet to see it. Normal distance visual acuity is 20/20.

  • Preliminary Tests

    Preliminary testing may include evaluating specific visual function and eye health aspects, such as depth perception, color vision, eye muscle movements, peripheral or side vision, and how your pupils respond to light.

  • Keratometry

    This test measures the curvature of the cornea, the clear outer surface of the eye, by focusing a circle of light on the cornea and measuring its reflection. This measurement is particularly critical in determining the proper fit for contact lenses.

  • Refraction

    Refractive error is determined with a phoropter and retinoscope refraction to determine the appropriate lens power needed to compensate for any refractive error (nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism). Using a phoropter, your ophthalmologist places a series of lenses in front of your eyes and measures how they focus light using a handheld lighted instrument called a retinoscope. The doctor may use an automated instrument to evaluate the eye's focusing power. The patient’s responses then refine the power to determine the lenses that allow the clearest vision.

This testing may be done without eye drops to determine how the eyes respond under normal seeing conditions. Eye drops are used in some cases, such as for patients who can’t respond verbally or when some of the eyes' focusing power may be hidden. The drops temporarily keep the eyes from changing focus while testing is done.

Doctor giving the child new glasses — Munster, IN — Munster Eye Care Associates

Eyeglasses and Contact Lenses

Lenses for correcting or improving vision. There are two types of lenses prescribed for correcting or improving vision.

  • Eyeglasses (Also called spectacles.)

    Eyeglasses, the most common form of eyewear used to correct or improve many types of vision problems, are a frame that holds two pieces of glass or plastic, which have been ground into lenses to correct refractive errors. Refractive errors can include nearsightedness or myopia (difficulty seeing far away), farsightedness or hyperopia (difficulty seeing close up), and astigmatism (blurring due to an irregularly shaped cornea). Eyeglasses perform this function by adding or subtracting focusing power to the eye’s cornea and lens.

  • Contact Lenses

    A synthetic lens fitted over the eye's cornea to correct various vision defects has multiple lens options to suit various prescriptions and lifestyles.


    The contact lens is a device worn in the eye to correct vision, although some people wear colored contact lenses to enhance or change their eye color. The synthetic lens floats on a film of tears directly over the cornea. Contact lenses correct vision better than conventional spectacles for some forms of eye disease. Many people prefer contact lenses over glasses for cosmetic reasons, and active sports enthusiasts prefer contact lens because of the freedom it provides them.


    There are three types of lenses: soft, hard, and gas-permeable. Soft contact lenses are usually more comfortable to wear but tear more easily than hard contact lenses. Hard lenses also tend to “pop” out more frequently. Gas-permeable lenses compromise the hard and soft, allowing greater comfort than hard lenses but less chance of tearing than soft lenses. Contacts are usually worn daily and taken out every night for cleaning. Extended-wear lenses allow users to leave their contacts longer, even when sleeping.


    More recently, one-a-day contact lenses are gaining popularity among lens wearers. These contacts are worn for only one day and thrown away, eliminating the hassle of cleaning them every night. Contact lens prescriptions can be different from eyeglass prescriptions and require different measurements.



Share by: