Choosing an Eye Doctor

Where do you go when you are having difficulty with your eyesight? Depending on the extent of the problem, your answer may vary. There are several different types of eye doctors and eye specialists you could see, including an ophthalmologist, optometrist, and optician.

What Is an Ophthalmologist?

Ophthalmologists are eye doctors that specialize in the medical and surgical care of the eyes and visual system, and also the prevention of eye disease and injury. They can be either doctors of medicine (MD) or doctors of osteopathy (DO).

An ophthalmologist is qualified to deliver total eye care, meaning vision services, eye exams, medical and surgical eye care, diagnosis and treatment of disease, and visual complications that are caused by other conditions, like diabetes.

An ophthalmologist has completed four years of pre-medical undergraduate education. Following college, the ophthalmologist first becomes a physician by completing four years of medical school and one year of postgraduate training These five years are spent in classrooms and direct patient care in a variety of hospitals, clinics, emergency rooms, and operating rooms.

After being licensed as a physician by the state medical board, the ophthalmologist then spends three or more additional years of specialized medical and surgical training specifically in eye care. Their specialty is in the diagnosis, treatment and management of medical and surgical conditions affecting the eye and visual system.

Ophthalmologists provide complete eye care services. These include:

• Vision services, including eye exams
  
• Medical eye care -- for glaucoma, iritis, chemical burns, and more
  
• Surgical eye care -- for trauma, crossed eyes, cataracts, glaucoma, and tumors, for example.
  
• Diagnosis and treatment of eye conditions related to other diseases, like diabetes (diabetic retinopathy), arthritis (iritis), or brain conditions (multiple sclerosis/optic neuritis)
  
• Eye disease and injury preventive services
  
• Plastic surgery -- some ophthalmologists offer this service for drooping eyelids or skin tumors, or for smoothing wrinkles and improving skin tone around the eyes