Poor eyesight

[davincis_playgr]

Hi all,

I have had bad eyesight practically since I was born. Apparently my eyes are too "long". I had to switch from contacts to glasses awhile back after a staph infection and had to get the tiniest frames available to avoid "coke bottle" syndrome. I'm just pre-dent right now, but my optometrist has suggested some options for me. I may have to double up and wear glasses PLUS contacts or possibly get interocular implants (contact lenses inside your eyes - $5,000+).

I'm just curious whether anyone else has similar vision problems and how you've coped with it, considering the detail work you have to do in dental school and in practice. Someone I spoke with awhile back said the interoculars are great, but you lose the ability to focus well on images that are really close - say within 6in.

Thanks!

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[ItsGavinC]

Welcome to SDN. I also have horrible eyesight, but I've been able to remedy it with contacts alone, or glasses when I choose.

I'm surprised that your optometrist would recommend contacts AND glasses, which seems like a wholly outdated method. Of course, I'm not up to snuff on this topic, but it seems odd given our modern advances.

Perhaps you should make an appointment with an ophthomologist and see what he recommends. Not to dis on the optometrist (or the profession in general), but a second opinion is always good.

 

[Midoc]

If you are 6 inches away from a tooth that you're working on then you'll have more issues that it just being out of focus. Besides being nose-to-nose with the patient you'll end up with horrible back problems. You'll probably want to buy loupes right away and maybe at a higher power than other students but there should be no reason that you vision (other than being blind) should bother you too much.

 

[DrRob]

is lasik surgery an option? I know people who had the surgery and then had to wear glasses but at a lower rx.

 

[davincis_playgr]

Thanks for everyone's replies.

I'll definitely have to ask for a second opinion from an Opth. sometime soon.

Thanks for the comment about loupes. Guess I never considered that there might be more than one power available.

Dr. Rob, it's funny you mentioned lasik. I talked to an Opth. once about it, and he said if they tried to lasik me, they'd have to take so much off that my eye would be punctured!

 

[Midoc]

There are a number of different types of loupes depending on what you're looking for. Looking at Designs for Vision's loupes, the magnification goes from 2.5x to 6.0x. Through other companies there are dental microscopes avalible that can go from low magnification up to around 15x magnification.

DFV has more information on their webpage so it is easier to talk about their loupes. Here are the magnifications they offer:
Standard Field
2.5x - see about 1 quadrant
3.5x - see about 3 teeth
4.5x - see about 1 tooth

Expanded Field
2.5x EF - see complete arch
3.5x EF - see about 1 sextant
4.5x EF - see about 2 teeth
6.0x EF - see about 1 tooth

Any of the big companies that sell loupes (DFV, Orascoptic, Surgitel) would be able to include your prescription into the loupes themselves. All three of these companies are good and offer quality products, which to choose is just a personal preference.

 

[endotom]

Like Midoc says,

These loops are something you would want to check out. All the grad students use them in the Endo. Dept. at Pitt. They are custom made for you and your field of vision preferences. These companies will work with you and let you try a number of them till you find what's right for you. They also come with a focusable light that attaches to a headband. You wouldn't believe what you can see with this. It's like looking into a pair of binoculars with stereo vision microscope capabilities. (If you want)

Check them out on web sites for the companies Dan listed above.

 

[ItsGavinC]

*reading this thread using my Surgitel loupes*

 

[davincis_playgr]

Thanks! This info is great!

 

[DDS2BE]

Bringing the old thread back to life ...

I am near sided by -6.0 units and use either glasses or contacts to correct my vision. People having similar vision problem can totally understand what happens when you read or do something up-close when wearing contacts… difficult to focus and eyes get tired quickly as a result of it. So, I always had to wear glasses to school/college and contacts for other occasions.

My question is if dental loops can be used with a combination of contacts or loops have to be custom made to correct vision? I’m sure that I’m not along here

 

[shopaholic]

Bringing the old thread back to life ...

I am near sided by -6.0 units and use either glasses or contacts to correct my vision. People having similar vision problem can totally understand what happens when you read or do something up-close when wearing contacts… difficult to focus and eyes get tired quickly as a result of it. So, I always had to wear glasses to school/college and contacts for other occasions.

My question is if dental loops can be used with a combination of contacts or loops have to be custom made to correct vision? I’m sure that I’m not along here

When you get loupes, the company offers to put the prescription lenses in for you, but if you have a strong prescription, then the lenses come out way too thick. I'd recommend you take them to an optometrist. I am at a -9, and I'm just too afraid to get implantable contact lenses and I'm not a good candidate for Lasik. If you're really concerned about your eyes, just specialize...anything but endo.

 

[DDS2BE]

... I'd recommend you take them to an optometrist. I am at a -9, and I'm just too afraid to get implantable contact lenses and I'm not a good candidate for Lasik. If you're really concerned about your eyes, just specialize...anything but endo.

Thanks shopaholic

Do you think an optometrist can put in those thin polycarbonate lenses in the loop's frame? And I do want to specialize in OMS.