AOA revises guidelines to reinforce importance of annual eye exams, comprehensive eye care
The American Optometric Association has issued an updated, evidence-based clinical practice guideline to emphasize the importance of annual in-person eye exams.
According to an AOA press release, more than 1 million people in the U.S. were legally blind in 2015, and up to 8.2 million were affected by uncorrected refractive errors. Those numbers are expected to double by 2050.
“Comprehensive eye exams provide the opportunity for early detection of eye health and visual performance problems, as well as the prevention of vision loss,” AOA President Ronald L. Benner, OD, said in the release. “Linked to decreased quality of life, eye and vision disorders can alter an individual’s overall physical and mental well-being, which has broad implication for the entire health care system.”
The new guideline recommends annual, comprehensive eye exams with a doctor of optometry for adults aged 18 to 64 years, noting these exams “optimize visual function, evaluate eye changes and provide for the early detection of sight-threatening eye and systemic health conditions.”
“The updated guideline offers doctors of optometry the means to provide quality comprehensive eye exams, which directly result in a patient’s improved visual function and quality of life,” Benner said in the release.
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