Optometrist vs. Ophthalmologist | Medical Optometry America (2024)

There Are Different Types of Eye Doctors

Optometrist vs. Ophthalmologist | Medical Optometry America (1)

If you’ve ever booked aneye exam, neededeye surgery, or had aneye infection, you’ve likely noticed there are different kinds of eye doctors to choose from. From optometrists to ophthalmologists, you may be confused about who you should see and when.

What’s the difference between an optometrist and an ophthalmologist anyway (besides how difficult it is to spell “ophthalmologist”)? Eacheye care professionalplays their own important role in your eye care, so it’s helpful to know the difference.

Optometrist vs. Ophthalmologist | Medical Optometry America (2)

What Is an Optometrist?

Optometrist vs. Ophthalmologist | Medical Optometry America (3)

Anoptometrist(doctor of optometry) is like a general practitioner, but for your eyes. Although the exact services differ from practice to practice, optometrists provide a range of primary eye care services.

What Services & Treatments Can Optometrists Provide?

While all Optometrists are trained to provide primary care for your eyes, they are perhaps best known for their expertise in providing vision correction and care. These eye care clinicians are focused on optimizing your visual acuity and helping you manage and optimize your vision as it changes throughout your life.

Some of theservicesoffered by an optometrist include:

  • Eye exams and vision tests
  • Eyeglass prescription updates and eyewear solutions
  • Contact lens fittings
  • Examination for common eye diseases and conditions

When Should You See an Optometrist?

You can see your optometrist for most of your routine eye care needs. In fact, you should see them for aroutine eye checkupevery year or so just to make sure your eyesight is optimized and your eyes are healthy. Manyeye diseasesdevelop with no symptoms, so an eye exam is vital for monitoring your eyes in general.

What Is a Medical Optometrist?

Optometrist vs. Ophthalmologist | Medical Optometry America (4)

There is a new and emerging category of eye doctor in America – the medical optometrist. Amedical optometristis a Doctor of Optometry who has chosen to focus exclusively on providing medical eye care to ensure the total visual and ocular health of their patients. These specialized clinicians have additional, advanced sub-specialty training, often through residency programs focused exclusively on eye diseases and conditions such as dry eye disease, glaucoma, diabetic eye health, age-related macular degeneration, among others.

What Services & Treatments Can a Medical Optometrist Provide?

While medical optometrists can also offer vision correction services and write prescriptions for glasses and contacts, they are dedicated to providing primary medical care for your eyes, assessing your eye health, monitoring and diagnosing diseases at their earliest stages, and providing a wide variety of therapeutic interventions.

Services and therapies offered by medical optometrists include:

  • Comprehensiveeye health examsfor adults, children, and seniors
  • Eye exams specifically designed for patients withdiabetes
  • Diagnosis and treatment for various eye diseases (likeglaucoma,macular degeneration,anterior eye and corneal diseaseandcataracts)
  • Dry eyediagnosis and comprehensive therapy options
  • Pre- and post-operative careincluding, counseling on surgical options
  • Emergency eye care
  • Prescription medications

On top of primary eye care, your medical optometrist also plays a significant role in youroverall health care. A comprehensive medical eye exam can oftendetect health conditionsseemingly unrelated to your eyes, likediabetes,high blood pressure,aneurysms,autoimmune diseases and certain neurological conditions.

When Should You See a Medical Optometrist?

Even if you have perfect vision or have corrected your vision to 20/20, there’s much more to your total visual and ocular health. Because many eye diseases and conditions develop without any symptoms in the earliest stages, getting an annual medical eye exam can help identify threatening issues before damage occurs. That’s why you should make a visit to a medical optometrist every year part of your regular health routines for optimal health.

What Is an Ophthalmologist?

Optometrist vs. Ophthalmologist | Medical Optometry America (5)

Anophthalmologistis a medical doctor who undergoes advanced eye care training and is licensed to practice medicine and surgery. They are secondary-level eye care providers who often work with your optometrist.

When discussing the difference between an optometrist and ophthalmologist, It’s almost like comparing yourfamily doctorwith acardiologist. You see your family doctor for regular appointments and for general health problems. But if you have aheart conditionand need more advanced care, you would see a cardiologist.

Ophthalmologists go through medical school and specialized ophthalmological training, and some choose to subspecialize in specific areas. Subspecialties usually require an additional year of focused training (called a Fellowship). They can be in areas likeglaucoma,retinal conditions,pediatrics,neurology,plastic surgery, and more.

What Services & Treatments Can Ophthalmologists Provide?

An ophthalmologist can provide many of thesame servicesan optometrist can, and many do actually providecomplete eye care. Because many ophthalmologists subspecialize in certain areas, their additional medical and surgical training enables them to perform a wide range of surgical and interventional procedures.

Someservices and treatmentsophthalmologists can provide include:

When Should You See an Ophthalmologist?

Many ophthalmologists and optometrists work together to provide fully comprehensive eye care for their patients.

You should see youroptometrist for general eye care, including eye exams, vision correction, contacts and spectacle interventions. For medical care of your eyes and on-going management of chronic eye diseases and conditions, amedical optometrist is ideal for primary medical eye care. Should you need amedical intervention or surgical care, your optometrist can refer you to an experienced ophthalmologist.

How to Choose the Eye Doctor You Need

Optometrist vs. Ophthalmologist | Medical Optometry America (6)

Ultimately, which doctor you see depends on the level of care you need.

Visit youroptometristfor general eye care and eyeglass or contact lens prescriptions,

Visit yourmedical optometristfor primary medical eye care, including eye medication prescriptions, monitoring and managing eye diseases, or emergency eye care services.

Visit anophthalmologistfor interventions like surgical treatments for serious eye diseases, advanced ocular problems, or refractive eye surgery. In most cases, you won’t need to find an ophthalmologist on your own: your optometrist can refer you to someone experienced and trustworthy.

Optometrist vs. Ophthalmologist | Medical Optometry America (2024)

FAQs

Optometrist vs. Ophthalmologist | Medical Optometry America? ›

Visit your medical optometrist for primary medical eye care, including eye medication prescriptions, monitoring and managing eye diseases, or emergency eye care services. Visit an ophthalmologist for interventions like surgical treatments for serious eye diseases, advanced ocular problems, or refractive eye surgery.

Is it better to see an ophthalmologist or optometrist? ›

Visit an optometrist for routine eye care, such as a yearly eye exam or fulfillment of an eyeglass, contact lens, or eye medication prescription. Visit an ophthalmologist for medical and surgical treatment of serious eye conditions, such as glaucoma or cataracts, or for laser eye surgery.

What can an ophthalmologist see that an optometrist cannot? ›

Ophthalmologists are medical doctors who can perform surgical eye procedures and treat conditions like glaucoma, cataracts, and strabismus. Optometrists provide primary eye care but have limited capabilities for treatments and surgeries compared to ophthalmologists.

Why choose optometry over ophthalmology? ›

Essentially, people who have common eye care challenges, such as the need for eyeglasses, will only ever see an optometrist. Patients with more severe eye problems or complex eye conditions will require care beyond an optometrist's abilities. They require an ophthalmologist.

Is optometry field oversaturated? ›

While the optometry field may seem oversaturated in certain areas, it's clear that the profession is still full of opportunities.

Can an optometrist diagnose eye problems? ›

Optometrists can diagnose and treat eye diseases and vision problems. They perform eye exams to identify any problems with eyes or vision. Optometrists can prescribe many of the most common treatments you'll need, including: Eyeglasses.

What are three conditions an ophthalmologist might treat? ›

What Conditions Does an Ophthalmologist Treat?
  • Age-related macular degeneration.
  • Amblyopia (lazy eye)
  • Astigmatism.
  • Cataracts.
  • Color blindness.
  • Diabetic retinopathy.
  • Glaucoma.
  • Conjunctivitis (pink eye)
May 15, 2024

Which doctor is best for eyes? ›

For general eye care, either an optometrist or ophthalmologist is a good option. Both of these types of eye doctors can: Give you a comprehensive dilated eye exam. Write a prescription for glasses or contacts.

Can optometrist see optic nerve without dilation? ›

The optic nerve can be seen through an undilated pupil, but for optimum viewing a dilated pupil is required. This is important for the diagnosis of glaucoma, as well as other diseases of the optic nerve. Learn about what to expect during a glaucoma eye exam.

Do optometrists get prescriptions wrong? ›

Errors made during an eye exam are not unusual. They can result from a typo on a computerized report or, more commonly, a misreading of a handwritten prescription.

What is the best eye doctor called? ›

The “highest” eye doctor—the type with the most extensive training—is an ophthalmologist, who must hold an MD degree before completing four years of additional ophthalmology schooling. Subspecialists in the field require still more education.

Is OD equivalent to MD? ›

A General Ophthalmologist is a Medical Doctor as well, but doesn't operate or perform surgery. An optometrist is an eye doctor who has earned a Doctor of Optometry (OD) degree. This is a four-year degree in addition to their standard college degree.

Why is optometry so expensive? ›

Retail Markup

Many brands apply retail markups to their glasses, and some companies can significantly inflate prices compared to wholesale costs. If you buy from a brick-and-mortar optical retailer, the price may include additional expenses for rent, utilities, employee salaries, and more.

Is optometry a dead-end job? ›

Absolutely not. Even with the advent of improved AI technologies, online vision retailers, and increased automation, the job outlook for optometrists is surprisingly rosy. This article dives deeper into the question: is optometry a dying field?

Is optometry becoming obsolete? ›

As Modern Optometry reminds its readers, at one point professionals thought LASIK surgery would make glasses obsolete. That clearly hasn't happened. The job outlook for optometrists is more than promising. US News & World Report ranks optometry the 13th-best healthcare profession and the 37th-best job overall.

What is the hardest class in optometry school? ›

Exams often come once a week, and I would say to focus on Anatomy and Vision Science because your first semester these will be your hardest classes.

What is the advantage of an ophthalmologist? ›

Ophthalmologists can spot eye disease early and take steps to protect your sight. Many eye conditions are silent: By the time you notice symptoms, your vision may be partially impaired. This is true for potentially blinding eye diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration, ocular melanoma or glaucoma.

Are ophthalmologists more expensive than optometrists? ›

A common misbelief about ophthalmologists is that they are not primary eye care providers or that they are more expensive than optometrists. That is simply not true.

What are the cons of optometrist? ›

Pros and cons of optometry
  • Pro: Job growth and employment opportunities. ...
  • Con: High cost of education. ...
  • Pro: High salary. ...
  • Pro: Exciting cases. ...
  • Con: Repetitive work. ...
  • Pro: Work/Life balance. ...
  • Con: Four plus years of education and licensing requirements. ...
  • Con: Lonely work.
Oct 27, 2022

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