my boy went for license and failed eye test
20-70
i now know what that means but he had a score of 7?
3 to 4 is noticeable ?
what this score mean?

and some thing about 1.75?

I’ll let Buffy explain what these numbers mean, I’ll only come in when I think she has missed something.

>>my boy went for license and failed eye test
20-70
i now know what that means but he had a score of 7?
3 to 4 is noticeable ?
what this score mean?

and some thing about 1.75?<<

I don’t understand quite what you have put there, so I’ll make some assumptions. I’m guessing that the 20-70 should be 20/70, although why American notation is in use is beyond me. In Australia we measure in metres, so the conversion for that would be 6/21. (6m=20ft which is the standardized testing distance) 6/21 is about 2 lines higher up the chart than what is required for driving vision.

The other figures make no sense at all, I’m sorry.

The 1.75 could easily be the amount of shortsightedness which would take you up the chart to the 6/21 line. So I would assume that glasses of -1.75D would give him normal 6/6 (20/20, if you must!!) vision. And that he would pass with glasses for driving and would have this marked on his licence.

Don’t worry about not knowing. We myopes don’t know what we are missing until someone shows us how fantastic the world would look if it was clearer. We routinely assume that what we see is what others see. And depending on his age (I’m assuming mid teens) this could have developed in the last 6 month to a year anyway. There are a group of people who become shortsighted in their mid teens, during the hormonal growth period. No-one knows quite why this is so.

Buffy, he is 16

http://www.precision-vision.com/index.cfm/product/316/rabin-contrast-sensitivity-cs-test.cfm

???

buffy said:

>>my boy went for license and failed eye test
20-70
i now know what that means but he had a score of 7?
3 to 4 is noticeable ?
what this score mean?

and some thing about 1.75?<<

I don’t understand quite what you have put there, so I’ll make some assumptions. I’m guessing that the 20-70 should be 20/70, although why American notation is in use is beyond me. In Australia we measure in metres, so the conversion for that would be 6/21. (6m=20ft which is the standardized testing distance) 6/21 is about 2 lines higher up the chart than what is required for driving vision.

The other figures make no sense at all, I’m sorry.

The 1.75 could easily be the amount of shortsightedness which would take you up the chart to the 6/21 line. So I would assume that glasses of -1.75D would give him normal 6/6 (20/20, if you must!!) vision. And that he would pass with glasses for driving and would have this marked on his licence.

Don’t worry about not knowing. We myopes don’t know what we are missing until someone shows us how fantastic the world would look if it was clearer. We routinely assume that what we see is what others see. And depending on his age (I’m assuming mid teens) this could have developed in the last 6 month to a year anyway. There are a group of people who become shortsighted in their mid teens, during the hormonal growth period. No-one knows quite why this is so.

Portnoy’s Syndrome?

buffy said:

There are a group of people who become shortsighted in their mid teens, during the hormonal growth period. No-one knows quite why this is so.

ah… I was prescribed and wore glasses around this time too, although I found I stopped wearing them by 19 and don’t wear, or need them now.. this might explain why. (I’ve never understood it)

No-one routinely tests contrast sensitivity GF. I have a contrast chart, which is mildly useful for watching how cataracts are developing, but I don’t bother really…..the patient can tell me if they are having trouble in the real world, which is, in practical terms, more useful.

Probably something else Arts…..once myopic, pretty much always myopic. If you used glasses for a few years and then didn’t need them you were more likely to be long sighted. How old are you now (you don’t have to answer that!) If you are/were longsighted, you will probably need reading glasses early rather than mid forties.

We catch up with you, one way or another.

I think I’m going to need reading glasses soon.

Just turned 40, I presume this is entirely normal for my age?

LOL.. shakes fist at eye folk

I am 40, so maybe I’ll need glasses soon enough..

Somewhere between 40 and 45, usually.

Don’t blame me….blame your ape ancestors! It’s all in the genes.

:)

I needed reading glasses at 48.

Peak Warming Man said:

I needed reading glasses at 48.

\

Me too

However my Auntie could still read a newspaper without glasses into her ninetys, she died before ever needing glasses.

Yes, but could she see in the distance PWM? I can read without glasses and will be able to for years because I am shortsighted (you have to have a win somewhere when you start wearing glasses at the age of 8). Mostly the very old who can read without glasses are shortsighted, either from their youth, or because they have developed the type of cataract that makes you shortsighted.

Peak Warming Man said:

I needed reading glasses at 48.

.. put-off to 48 perhaps?

I can still read fine-print, just notice it’s getting harder than it used to be.

>>Yes, but could she see in the distance PWM?

Probably not.

>I needed reading glasses at 48.

That’s when I got mine as well. Although I’d probably put it off for 6 months too late.

buffy said:

Somewhere between 40 and 45, usually.

Bang on for me.. I had to use them 42-43

Although I am skiting about being shortsighted, we do have the same problems if we try to read with our glasses on. I prescribed myself some reading type lenses when I was about 42 because I have to read the equipment in the dark during consulting and I had trouble at that stage. I didn’t need them for normal reading until a few years later.

An optometrist in Canberra had spidery silver writing on a white background for his business card. I am sure he said, if you cannot read this, get someone to call the number and make an appointment.

Do women make passes at bears that wear glasses?

buffy said:

We myopes don’t know what we are missing until someone shows us how fantastic the world would look if it was clearer. We routinely assume that what we see is what others see.

My myopia became bad enough in mid-late teens to require glasses, and I still miss having good vision all those many years later. I don’t assume anything – I know what I am missing …. my vision went to shit then and others see better. Entirely dependant on glasses, intolerant of contact lenses, may or may not use glasses with a microscope, fine with prescription sunnies (although sites vary on AS and I may need to fork out for site approved glasses is some officious OSH turd needs to exercise their authoritah), presciption lenses for dive mask still good (which is great since they’re expensive to replace), just one of those things.

thanks guys.

had little or no info to go on. my partner Di took him and the lady was not very good at giving info so i thought i would ask you guys.

i wrongly assumed that they still tested kids eyes during there school years and never though any thing of it.
this was his first eye test.

i dont know but…. the score, how many lines on an eye chart?

if the top line is 8 the next line down is 7? he could only read the second line with both eyes.

and so on. so if the bottom line is the 8th line giving a score of 1.

i know you said buffy that this may have happened in the last few years, but i will be encuraging people to have there kids eyes tested . to think this could have been picked up earlyer makes me feel like i could have let my boy down by not been more pro active,, but i never knew ..

not to worry he’s the best of kids and he’s looking forward to his glasses. he was quite shocked him self during the test, he had no idea

:)
thanks for imput
i like it here its like the old sssf
freindly people sharing knolage
the reason i first came

love love to all

I don’t mind being short-sighted, since glasses easily rectify the problem when needed. What I miss though is the excellent very-close-up vision I used to have until about my mid-forties, when the nearest sharp focus started moving further away.

robadob said:

thanks guys.

had little or no info to go on. my partner Di took him and the lady was not very good at giving info so i thought i would ask you guys.

i wrongly assumed that they still tested kids eyes during there school years and never though any thing of it.
this was his first eye test.

i dont know but…. the score, how many lines on an eye chart?

if the top line is 8 the next line down is 7? he could only read the second line with both eyes.

and so on. so if the bottom line is the 8th line giving a score of 1.

i know you said buffy that this may have happened in the last few years, but i will be encuraging people to have there kids eyes tested . to think this could have been picked up earlyer makes me feel like i could have let my boy down by not been more pro active,, but i never knew ..

not to worry he’s the best of kids and he’s looking forward to his glasses. he was quite shocked him self during the test, he had no idea

:)
thanks for imput
i like it here its like the old sssf
freindly people sharing knolage
the reason i first came

love love to all

Hey Rob, Buffy said it might have only happened in the last few months, not few years. Stop beating yourself up.

Different charts have different number of lines on them so I can’t help you out there I’m afraid.

Once he has his glasses you can all safety get out on the road … and that will be a whole new lot of fun.

thanks JJ i know.

:)
but he’s me boy
he’s well up beat about it.
when i tried to say i felt bad incase i let him down he made it quite clear that i could not have know..:)

neomyrtus_ said:

buffy said:

We myopes don’t know what we are missing until someone shows us how fantastic the world would look if it was clearer. We routinely assume that what we see is what others see.

My myopia became bad enough in mid-late teens to require glasses, and I still miss having good vision all those many years later. I don’t assume anything – I know what I am missing …. my vision went to shit then and others see better. Entirely dependant on glasses, intolerant of contact lenses, may or may not use glasses with a microscope, fine with prescription sunnies (although sites vary on AS and I may need to fork out for site approved glasses is some officious OSH turd needs to exercise their authoritah), presciption lenses for dive mask still good (which is great since they’re expensive to replace), just one of those things.

That is a shame. I lasted until about 50 before I needed glasses. Now there are so many things that I simply cannot manage because of my vision. It would be a bit better if I could hang on to a pair of ‘scription glasses for more than a few weeks without losing them. :(

morrie said:

That is a shame. I lasted until about 50 before I needed glasses. Now there are so many things that I simply cannot manage because of my vision. It would be a bit better if I could hang on to a pair of ‘scription glasses for more than a few weeks without losing them. :(

You know if you just keep them on your face it’s actually really hard to lose them

:-)

jennajones said:

morrie said:

That is a shame. I lasted until about 50 before I needed glasses. Now there are so many things that I simply cannot manage because of my vision. It would be a bit better if I could hang on to a pair of ‘scription glasses for more than a few weeks without losing them. :(

You know if you just keep them on your face it’s actually really hard to lose them

:-)

Yes, but I only need them for reading.

morrie said:

Yes, but I only need them for reading.

I can see how that would be a pain – but as long as you can actually see the rest of the time with them on (big assumption) then it’s no harm to leave them in place?

morrie said:

That is a shame. I lasted until about 50 before I needed glasses. Now there are so many things that I simply cannot manage because of my vision. It would be a bit better if I could hang on to a pair of ‘scription glasses for more than a few weeks without losing them. :(

Ha! That’s one thing I am good at (more or less, and Mr Neo will beg to disagree). I know where my glasses are pretty much all the time, and where my sunnies are, and spares are distributed at crucial places should primary eyewear fail to surface. Lost one pair a while back when someone pushed me over in me kayak at dusk (used sunnies to drive home) – I snorkelled for them the next morning and found them immediately in 5m of water.

Mr Neo never fails to amaze me on his remarkable ability to lose his sunglasses.

neomyrtus_ said:

Ha! That’s one thing I am good at (more or less, and Mr Neo will beg to disagree). I know where my glasses are pretty much all the time, and where my sunnies are, and spares are distributed at crucial places should primary eyewear fail to surface. Lost one pair a while back when someone pushed me over in me kayak at dusk (used sunnies to drive home) – I snorkelled for them the next morning and found them immediately in 5m of water.

That is impressive

morrie said:

Yes, but I only need them for reading.

Glasses neck chain / lanyard for you.

>It would be a bit better if I could hang on to a pair of ‘scription glasses for more than a few weeks without losing them.

Morrie, I’ve got two sets of prescription glasses and about 20 of those $5 ones lying about. The prescription I always use for the office and reading inside the house, the cheaps are for site work, in the car etc.

neomyrtus_ said:

morrie said:

Yes, but I only need them for reading.

Glasses neck chain / lanyard for you.

Yeah, but that has its problems, like getting caught in things like machinery.

And no, you can’t wear reading glasses in the general course of life, jenna.

sibeen said:

>It would be a bit better if I could hang on to a pair of ‘scription glasses for more than a few weeks without losing them.

Morrie, I’ve got two sets of prescription glasses and about 20 of those $5 ones lying about. The prescription I always use for the office and reading inside the house, the cheaps are for site work, in the car etc.

I have been considering tying the prescription ones to the desk.

Neophyte said:

Do women make passes at bears that wear glasses?

Not many women ever see my reading glasses :) but I am mastering the un-amused looking over the top rim thing :)

morrie said:

neomyrtus_ said:

morrie said:

Yes, but I only need them for reading.

Glasses neck chain / lanyard for you.

Yeah, but that has its problems, like getting caught in things like machinery.

And no, you can’t wear reading glasses in the general course of life, jenna.

I’ve got half glasses, never even know I have them on most times.

>>i know you said buffy that this may have happened in the last few years, but i will be encuraging people to have there kids eyes tested . to think this could have been picked up earlyer makes me feel like i could have let my boy down by not been more pro active,, but i never knew ..<<

As jenna said rob, don’t worry about it. Myopia is simply a blur in the distance. It doesn’t interfere with visual development because there is clear vision, it just happens to be closer to you than infinity. I do think it’s a good idea for kids to be tested though (professional money grubbing aside) because long sighted kids are often the ones who don’t like reading because it is more difficult for them to do than for the other kids. Short sighted kids don’t miss out on that aspect.

I love it when the myopes pick up their first pair of glasses. Doesn’t matter if they are kids or teenagers….the WOW!!!!! on their face is lovely to see. I watched one mother grab her daughter back from the edge of the road many years ago as the girl walked out the door marvelling at what she could see…..entirely engrossed in the fact she could read the signs on the other side of the road and oblivious to the cars driving on the road.

:)

buffy said:

>>i know you said buffy that this may have happened in the last few years, but i will be encuraging people to have there kids eyes tested . to think this could have been picked up earlyer makes me feel like i could have let my boy down by not been more pro active,, but i never knew ..<<

As jenna said rob, don’t worry about it. Myopia is simply a blur in the distance. It doesn’t interfere with visual development because there is clear vision, it just happens to be closer to you than infinity. I do think it’s a good idea for kids to be tested though (professional money grubbing aside) because long sighted kids are often the ones who don’t like reading because it is more difficult for them to do than for the other kids. Short sighted kids don’t miss out on that aspect.

I love it when the myopes pick up their first pair of glasses. Doesn’t matter if they are kids or teenagers….the WOW!!!!! on their face is lovely to see. I watched one mother grab her daughter back from the edge of the road many years ago as the girl walked out the door marvelling at what she could see…..entirely engrossed in the fact she could read the signs on the other side of the road and oblivious to the cars driving on the road.

:)

Bloody danger to the public, these eye-doktards

I agree with Buffy that getting kids checked is good, and have had my kids checked, even though childhood checking made my vision worse than it should be.

OK, I’ll bite:

>>even though childhood checking made my vision worse than it should be.<<

How can this be?

morrie said:

neomyrtus_ said:

morrie said:

Yes, but I only need them for reading.

Glasses neck chain / lanyard for you.

Yeah, but that has its problems, like getting caught in things like machinery.

And no, you can’t wear reading glasses in the general course of life, jenna.

It is possible to get bifocals that have a zero prescription in the upper part. That way, you can always have your spectacles on.

Me? Astigmatic. worn spectacles since I was 20. Getting the bifocals at 43, was not such a big deal, because I had to wear glasses all the time anyway.

I love it when the myopes pick up their first pair of glasses. Doesn’t matter if they are kids or teenagers….the WOW!!!!! on their face is lovely to see. I watched one mother grab her daughter back from the edge of the road many years ago as the girl walked out the door marvelling at what she could see…..entirely engrossed in the fact she could read the signs on the other side of the road and oblivious to the cars driving on the road.

:)
——————————————————————-

When I got my first spectacles, I was amazed about the colours. They were so much more vibrant. So much less grey.

Michael V said:

It is possible to get bifocals that have a zero prescription in the upper part. That way, you can always have your spectacles on.

Me? Astigmatic. worn spectacles since I was 20. Getting the bifocals at 43, was not such a big deal, because I had to wear glasses all the time anyway.

That’s a clever solution

:)

(But getting Mrs V to do this is not so easy.)

(She commonly leaves her reading spectacles somewhere else…)

(Maybe you should try to convince her that my solution has merit.)

;)

How can this be?
————-
Of dear, this was 35 years ago but I will try and get most of the facts right.

As a pre-teen my left eye was good. 20/10… sorry Buffy, 6/3 vision. My right was not so good, I couldn’t see much of anything. Specialist testing prescribed glasses (sorry I can’t remember if it was for long or short sightedness). But they made no difference what-so-ever, however the specialist siad they would help given time. My vision kept getting worse in that eye. This went on for several years. After four years I refused to wear the glasses (buried several pairs in the sandpit) and my mother stopped taking me to the specialist because of that refusal.

Three and a half years after that my mother got the guilts and took me back to the specialist, who said my vison was finally getting better (not actually getting better, but not getting worse anymore). Then she told him that can’t be the case because I hadn’t worn my glasses. He gave me many more tersts and discovered that I was ambleopic(???), I think the common term is lazy eye. This meant that the glasses couln’t help as the physical focusing was fine but the eye-brain interconnection was rubbish. The normal treatment was to patch the good eye and force the bad eye to sort it sh*t out, but I was now too old for this to be reasonably effective.

NOTE: Sorry Buffy if I got the terms wrong, but that is the gist of it as I remember.

Michael V said:

:)

(But getting Mrs V to do this is not so easy.)

(She commonly leaves her reading spectacles somewhere else…)

(Maybe you should try to convince her that my solution has merit.)

;)

too sad :-( sounds like such a good idea and much cheaper than replacing the glasses when lost

>>ambleopic(???), I think the common term is lazy eye. This meant that the glasses couln’t help as the physical focusing was fine but the eye-brain interconnection was rubbish.<<

Your memory is pretty good, actually. The word you are seeking is amblyopic. There are several types of amblyopia. If one eye is very differently focussed from the other, the eye to brain connections fail to develop properly in the poor eye, because the body is lazy and takes the easy way out and uses the ‘good’ one. This is refractive amblyopia, most commonly found in long sighted (hyperopic) people. The most recent research (and clinical experience) says you put glasses on the child to focus up the bad eye and hopefully the brain goes “ooh, look….there are two of them” and sets up the connections. This can be very, very effective. From your story, I would assume this is you. But I’ve got no idea how this could right itself. It doesn’t happen. I’m wondering if the initial diagnosis was dodgy. But at this place in time…who knows. If you happen to have a copy of your spectacle prescription, it might hold a clue. A current one even. If one lens is rather different from the other, that is probably what was going on back in your developmental years.

There are other reasons for amblyopia, like a turned eye. Strabismic amblyopia. If the eyes are not both pointing in the same direction, you will get double vision. So the brain says “oh….f…this, I’ll just turn one image off so I know where I am in the world”. Over time the brainswitch becomes so effective it can’t be turned back on again. That is why children with turned eyes are operated on very young, to get alignment and make the brain attend to both sources of input.

Patching is used, but there are all sorts of “discussions” about its effectiveness, how long to patch for, should you alternate patching (long term patching of the good eye can be detrimental and make it amblyopic – not a good outcome).

(I’m not sure you really wanted a lecture……..)

Oh, and you are not unique in burying them in the sandpit (or tossing them over the back fence) An amblyopic child will tell you the glasses don’t make any difference. And of course, they don’t, because their brain is still predominantly paying attention to the input from the good eye. But we can monitor the vision on the chart, and it is not unusual over the first couple of months to gain two or three lines in the bad eye.

Then, once you get the eyes close to the same, I usually come to an agreement with the child that they can wear them for classroom, reading, computer and TV but take them off outside. But in the initial balancing up time, they do need to wear them fulltime.

buffy said:

>>ambleopic(???), I think the common term is lazy eye. This meant that the glasses couln’t help as the physical focusing was fine but the eye-brain interconnection was rubbish.<<

Your memory is pretty good, actually. The word you are seeking is amblyopic. There are several types of amblyopia. If one eye is very differently focussed from the other, the eye to brain connections fail to develop properly in the poor eye, because the body is lazy and takes the easy way out and uses the ‘good’ one. This is refractive amblyopia, most commonly found in long sighted (hyperopic) people. The most recent research (and clinical experience) says you put glasses on the child to focus up the bad eye and hopefully the brain goes “ooh, look….there are two of them” and sets up the connections. This can be very, very effective. From your story, I would assume this is you. But I’ve got no idea how this could right itself. It doesn’t happen. I’m wondering if the initial diagnosis was dodgy. But at this place in time…who knows. If you happen to have a copy of your spectacle prescription, it might hold a clue. A current one even. If one lens is rather different from the other, that is probably what was going on back in your developmental years.

There are other reasons for amblyopia, like a turned eye. Strabismic amblyopia. If the eyes are not both pointing in the same direction, you will get double vision. So the brain says “oh….f…this, I’ll just turn one image off so I know where I am in the world”. Over time the brainswitch becomes so effective it can’t be turned back on again. That is why children with turned eyes are operated on very young, to get alignment and make the brain attend to both sources of input.

Patching is used, but there are all sorts of “discussions” about its effectiveness, how long to patch for, should you alternate patching (long term patching of the good eye can be detrimental and make it amblyopic – not a good outcome).

(I’m not sure you really wanted a lecture……..)

I am happy to be lectured by people like yourself that have knowledge in a field.

You said “But I’ve got no idea how this could right itself. It doesn’t happen”. It didn’t right itself. I still have bad vision in that eye, but it stopped getting worse. Now it may be that it stopped getting worse for its own reasons, or that it stopped getting worse because I was no longer wearing glasses, I am not sure but the specialist seemed to think it was because I was no longer giving help to it.

There are other reasons for amblyopia, like a turned eye. Strabismic amblyopia. If the eyes are not both pointing in the same direction, you will get double vision. So the brain says “oh….f…this, I’ll just turn one image off so I know where I am in the world”. Over time the brainswitch becomes so effective it can’t be turned back on again. That is why children with turned eyes are operated on very young, to get alignment and make the brain attend to both sources of input.

———————————-

Mrs V: three operations, young. Eye still turns when tired.

My grandmother had a badly turned eye. Never seemed to worry her.

Michael V said:

morrie said:

neomyrtus_ said:

Glasses neck chain / lanyard for you.

Yeah, but that has its problems, like getting caught in things like machinery.

And no, you can’t wear reading glasses in the general course of life, jenna.

It is possible to get bifocals that have a zero prescription in the upper part. That way, you can always have your spectacles on.

Me? Astigmatic. worn spectacles since I was 20. Getting the bifocals at 43, was not such a big deal, because I had to wear glasses all the time anyway.

I have tried bifocals and more. Doesn’t work for me. In particular I thought that they would be great in the case of safety glasses but I found them a constant irritation.

morrie said:

Michael V said:

morrie said:

Yeah, but that has its problems, like getting caught in things like machinery.

And no, you can’t wear reading glasses in the general course of life, jenna.

It is possible to get bifocals that have a zero prescription in the upper part. That way, you can always have your spectacles on.

Me? Astigmatic. worn spectacles since I was 20. Getting the bifocals at 43, was not such a big deal, because I had to wear glasses all the time anyway.

I have tried bifocals and more. Doesn’t work for me. In particular I thought that they would be great in the case of safety glasses but I found them a constant irritation.

Bummer.

I love it when the myopes pick up their first pair of glasses. Doesn’t matter if they are kids or teenagers….the WOW!!!!! on their face is lovely to see.
————————————————————————

Yep, it is amazing. My eyesight deteriorated around 2nd class and no one noticed – she’s vague/clumsy etc. First year of high school my eyes were tested. I was with my friend (who had received her glasses the week before) and she warned me that it would be amazing. So there I was standing in Elizabeth Street Sydney, peak hour commuters everywhere, me in my full school uniform (gloves, beret, blazer etc – looking very posh) and I’m absolutely gobsmacked at the world…..I just kept saying WOW!! Turning around and saying WOW! I can see buildings! The buses! WOW!

I also remember not blinking, as I thought it would all disappear. Often when I was swimming, I’d get a film of water over my eyes and it would give me clear vision for an instant…always amazed me :)

and I’m absolutely gobsmacked at the world…..I just kept saying WOW!! Turning around and saying WOW! I can see buildings! The buses! WOW!

————————-
And now Kii looks around at the world and keeps saying “ desert… more desert…it looks the same with or without my glasses”

Stealth said:

and I’m absolutely gobsmacked at the world…..I just kept saying WOW!! Turning around and saying WOW! I can see buildings! The buses! WOW!

————————-
And now Kii looks around at the world and keeps saying “ desert… more desert…it looks the same with or without my glasses”

And she looks at the line of customers, and takes her glasses off because it’s an improvement.

Very funny :P

>>You said “But I’ve got no idea how this could right itself. It doesn’t happen”. It didn’t right itself. I still have bad vision in that eye, but it stopped getting worse. Now it may be that it stopped getting worse for its own reasons, or that it stopped getting worse because I was no longer wearing glasses, I am not sure but the specialist seemed to think it was because I was no longer giving help to it.<<

I’d say it was just intractable. I very much doubt stopping wearing the glasses stopped it. I’m a bit curious to know how it was measured to be getting worse, as that is something I’ve never seen. It either doesn’t get better, or it improves a bit but not enough to be useful. I know, at this distance in time we are never going to know.

(I guess it is also possible that the glasses just weren’t correct….it does happen, although we hope it doesn’t)