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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Taking my child to another eye test for a second opinion

27 replies

Dorange · 08/09/2013 01:07

My dc (6) had her first eye test done and she will need glasses for reading.
The lady said herself she wasn't very experienced, she wasn't sure the eye drops worked...asked help from her colleague...I just didn't feel convinced...how do I know dc wasn't plying up with the answers?
Should I go to other optician and repeat the test?

OP posts:

lizzzyyliveson · 08/09/2013 01:10

Yes, the first pair of glasses are so important. If you are not happy then don't get the prescription made up until it is checked.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 01:13

Thing is the prescription is already gone due to be ready on Tuesday.
Can I still go get a second opinion?

OP posts:

bsc · 08/09/2013 01:15

Well, the tests are free, and the specs are free, so you've nothing to lose (other than time) by going elsewhere.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 01:17

I wasn't sure if they would allow. Going to book tomorrow.

OP posts:

Fox82 · 08/09/2013 01:18

The drops are to dilate the pupils so just by looking at your dc's eyes (after 20 mins or so) the optician would have known if they'd worked or not. Sometimes it's hard to know if the drops go in at the time if little ones are blinking lots/wriggling, but the optician would've known before issuing a prescription.

The fact that eye drops were being put in your dc's eyes means the optician wasn't relying on her answers, but getting a more accurate result by doing this.

So it's probably not as bad as it seemed. Although of course your child's vision is very important, and if you feel at all unsure then get a second opinion.

BrianTheMole · 08/09/2013 01:19

If you don't feel happy then get a second opinion.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 01:20

It was after half an hour after the drops, looking at the pupils when the optician said she wasn't sure as "children's pupils are so big anyway"...

OP posts:

Fox82 · 08/09/2013 01:21

The NHS allow a second opinion. Although bear in mind for future that tests and specs aren't "free", they're paid for by the NHS. So your dc can't have unlimited specs/tests as the NHS don't allow it.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 01:24

That is why I am worried if I will be entitled to a second opinion since the specs were already ordered.

OP posts:

Fox82 · 08/09/2013 01:29

You can just phone up and cancel the specs and go and get a second opinion, you're completely entitled to do so. The optician you see next should still be able to do the test under the NHS as the NHS do fund second opinions.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 01:31

If I don't phone up and cancel (since will be ready on Tuesday? too late?) Can I still have a second opinion?

OP posts:

Fox82 · 08/09/2013 01:38

Hmmm. You could go and collect them, then go to another optician and say "I'm not convinced these specs are right for dc as the lady doing the test seemed unsure and inexperienced, therefore I would like a second opinion". Then they will probably look at your dc wearing the specs and check that they are right.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 09:43

Great, thanks.

OP posts:

chanie44 · 08/09/2013 21:03

I think you should get a second opinion but I think that despite the opticians experience, I'm sure the prescription is fairly accurate.

My ds was complaining about his eyes aged 2.5. The optician put the drops in his eyes but had to put a second set in - they said they don't work so well on dark eyes. He also wriggled a lot and we had to hold him down to get the drops in, so it's not surprising they didn't work the first time!!!!

I was really worried when they said ds would need to be referred to the hospital as his prescription is so high. He's been wearing glasses for nearly a year now and he's seen at the hospital every 3 months. It was horrible finding out, but it's been fine.

When he first got the glasses he wouldn't wear them (although it's for reading, they said he should wear them all the time). He slowly realised that he can see better with them and is pretty good at wearing them now. He sometimes throws them across the room when having a 3 year old tantrum, but I don't make a big deal about it, I pick them up and put them within his reach so he can put them back on when he is ready.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 21:15

I had to wear glasses from the age of 5 until laser surgery, it is fine, I am not bothered by it.

OP posts:

idiot55 · 08/09/2013 21:18

Do you have a note of the prescription they ordered?

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 21:29

They didn't give me anything

OP posts:

Pigsmummy · 08/09/2013 22:39

I am confused about the drops, I have terrible eyesight as an adult and am worried about DD, why do they use drops? OP get the glasses made and take them elsewhere to confirm that they are correct.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 22:47

Dilating drops (also called ?mydriatics?) are used to enlarge the pupil for eye examinations to allow the eye doctors to see into the eye in detail. The eye doctor can then see the optic nerve and retina as well as the whole lens. Dilating drops work either by temporarily paralyzing the muscle that makes the pupil smaller (iris sphincter muscle) or by stimulating the iris dilator muscle. Patients with lighter eye color (blue, hazel) are more sensitive and dilate faster than patients with darker eye color (brown).

OP posts:

FryOneFatManic · 08/09/2013 22:51

Drops are used to enlarge the pupil to allow a good look inside the eye. They can take around 20 mins upwards to work, and sometimes need to be repeated as they don't always work.

While a second opinion might be needed, if your concern is because of the drops, I wouldn't actually worry at all.

In fact, my consultant, when I went to hospital as an out patient in April, had 2 of his colleagues come in to check out my eye to clarify something he was unsure about. It's not unusual.

I had lots of drops then, and they didn't always work, or the wait between the drops being put in and seeing the consultant was too long, and they'd have to be repeated.

It really freaked the DCs out to see one eye with a massively enlarged pupil, and the other my plain ordinary grey

LifeHuh · 08/09/2013 22:53

If you want a second opinion you would have to have the second test authorised by what used to be the PCT ,in advance. You'd need to speak to wherever you decided to go about this. Or pay privately.
If you are concerned I would go in and ask to speak to the optician, and if you are still not happy with what she says think about a retest. The drops mean the optician does not have to rely on what your child says so you don't need to worry about that aspect of it.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 22:57

Ok. But she said herself she wasn't sure the drops worked even when examining the eye after the drops. But my child did say she could se blurry...I just don't want to rely on what the child said.
Maybe I am overreacting. I felt confident on the day, just after had second thoughts

OP posts:

LifeHuh · 08/09/2013 23:00

Oh , and the drops used to test children are called Cycloplegics- they do dilate the pupil and give a better view of the back of the eye , but they are used because they also work to stop the eye changing focus ( accommodating). This lets the optician check how short or longsightedness the child is without the findings altering every time they move their eyes! The result is objective - it doesn't depend on what the child says. Hth!

LifeHuh · 08/09/2013 23:06

If your child said things were blurry it sounds as if the drops did work . But it isn't usually hard to tell if they have worked- they make the pupil in the middle of the eye big, and stop it reacting to light, so if you shine a torch on the eye the pupil doesn't get smaller as it normally would in the light. The pupils look big for a good few hours afterwards too.

Original poster

Dorange · 08/09/2013 23:06

So to clarify.

If a person is longsighted, they can't see very well from close (hypermetropia)
If a person is shortsighted they can't see very well from far (myopia)

Is that right?

OP posts:

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