Do I really need to get my eyes dilated?

We know it’s a little uncomfortable. You’ve heard about the side effects – slightly blurry vision and significant glare that can last a couple of hours, until the drops wear off.

But here is why it’s worth doing.

The pupil in the middle of the coloured part of your eye opens and closes to allow the right amount of light to enter for comfortable vision.  Some people naturally have larger or smaller pupils (and even unequal pupil sizes), and pupil size tends to decrease with age.

Dilating drops make your pupils larger, so your optometrist can examine the health of your retina (back of your eye) more easily and effectively. This is particularly important if your vision is poor or you have new symptoms, you are a diabetic or an older patient, have high blood pressure or cataracts, or there is a family history of glaucoma or macular degeneration.

We recommend that you avoid driving after your pupils have been dilated, until the pupil size returns to normal.  Whilst these short-term side effects can be annoying, the benefits of this procedure are well worth the inconvenience.

For all enquiries and eye test bookings at UFS Optical, please call 03 5441 8077.