Quality of Sight
For
the past two weeks, WXYZ-7, St. John Health System and Providence
Hospital have urged you to get a free vision screening test
at your local CVS Pharmacy. The test is a progressive eye
exam and can tell you a lot about the quality of what you
may or may not see.
Your
eyes are irreplaceable. You try to protect them with sunglasses
and other eyewear, but you find yourself in front of the computer
for long hours or you squint to see. So you get an eye exam.
Did you know the test you take is almost 140 years old?
"The eye chart that we normally test with is a limited measure
of testing vision," Arthur Ginsburg, Ph.D., says. "As we say,
20/20 is not enough. Once we understand that, then we need
a different way of testing vision."
Enter
the contrast sensitivity test. Ginsburg is the pioneer behind
the vision screening cards now available at CVS pharmacies.
It determines the quality of your vision the same way the
hearing test determines how good you can hear.
This
test is not diagnostic. That is, it cannot tell you what's
wrong with your vision. It simply tells you to see the doctor
if you fail.
"It
turns out that contrast, sensitivity is an early indication
of many eye diseases, that you don't pick up with your normal
eye chart," Ginsburg says. "It also relates to functional
vision, how well we're going to perform in our every day work
life and play life."
The
contrast sensitivity test does not replace the typical E chart,
but complements it.
