How do you approach the subject if you feel like your vision is starting to go slightly bad? Get an eye exam before your first class medical and get some glasses? Or show up to your first class and work with your FAA dr on it? What happens if you go to the first class and don't pass the eye exam?

 

If you don’t pass the eye exam at your FAA doc they’ll delay your medical until it is examined by an eye doc and corrected. Might as well be proactive and get it fixed before your medical. Unless of course waiting to get it corrected after your medical provides a strategic scheduling advantage for you.

 

I learned some stuff from my buddy who's ex Navy flight surgeon and current ophthalmologist...

Get an eye exam from a real ophthalmologist if you have any doubts about your ability to correct to 20/20. Not the optometrist at the glasses shop in the mall. Before you go to your FAA exam. You really need an annual eye exam anyway, so I do that about two months before my EKG medical is due. I check my glasses with an eye chart at home before the other medical.

If something changed recently, it's probably because you're getting older. Lots of stuff can go wrong...

Macula/retina: Degeneration here will be a big problem for the FAA. But if you live healthy and do cardio it's pretty unlikely prior to age 65, unless you have diabetes or very high BP (which would ground you anyway). I do take some supplements specifically for retina health, just to be safe, since I can't always find spinach salads on the road. Retina can also become detached... this is a medical emergency, get help immediately if your vision is suddenly disturbed or uneven.

Lens: Cataracts are likely for most of us, but usually not bad enough to ground you before age 55 or later. Modern surgical techniques provide a quick fix with lens replacement. Likely that you'll see much better than before, but there is a small risk of complications so probably best not to go there until you really need to.

Cornea: This can get irritated by injury (you'd know it) or dry eye syndrome (very common after age 40+), and become uneven. Dry eye syndrome is probably not what you think it is, but the doc can quickly check for dry eyes and cornea smoothness in the office. Basic moisturizing eye drops will probably heal the cornea just fine in a matter of weeks (I'd recommend preservative free). Worst case, laser surgery to smooth it out.


But like I said, get a real eye exam.

 

Thanks a lot, this is really helpful. Think I am going to go the "real" eye doctor route and see what they say. Appreciate the thoughtful response!

 

Just for clarification for those that wonder. An ophthalmologist is a person who gets an MD, then gets a specialty in eyes. Just like a heart surgeon is a person who gets an MD, then gets a specialty in heart surgery. Mine does eye surgery (mostly cataracts) every morning. Each afternoon, he does refractions for glasses and examines and treats eye disease.

An optometrist (DO) is a person who gets a doctor in Optometry. They do refractions for glasses and examines for eye disease. They do not do sophisticated treatment nor surgery.

 

In my case I did something very similar to what rickair7777 suggested. Saw an MD, got glasses, and then reported the visit on my 1st Class application as a routine eye exam (which it legitimately was).

And then for 2+ years I always brought my specs (basically "readers") to my AME appointments... but *never volunteered* to wear them for the eye test... even though I would wear them as needed in the cockpit.

But yes, once the day came that I heard the inevitable (but not unexpected), "Can you read that last line for me again?" it was a complete non-issue when I asked, "Okay if I put my glasses on for this?"

And with that, the *only* things that changed were: the annotation on my medical indicating that I needed glasses for near vision, AND I started carrying a "pair and a spare" whenever I flew.

As for progressives vs bifocals... that's been a *much* more complicated process (for me) to navigate, but there's some *really* solid advice to be found in some of the other postings RE: progressive brands, bifocal demarcation-line placement, etc.

Good luck!

 

They are also not very good at diagnosing issues in my experience. If you're older just go to the real doc annually.

 

Print out the FAA report of eye exam, go to your eye doctor for the exam and have him complete if. You should be getting a yearly exam anyway, if you have no eye issue and see 20/20 bring the form in when you do your 1 st class medical and no eye exam needed by AME, they look it over make a copy...

One thing that is not listed specifically to check for some reason is color vison. Make sure DR writes in remarks section/professional evaluation color vision normal, once they didn't put and had to do just color vision test at AME. I have been using the Report of Eye exam 20 plus years since. I unfortunately had an eye issue develop and now have to use the form due to the eye problem.

Once the form is completed its good for 90 days so for me when I needed a 1 st class had to get eye exam twice a year. I and some people also have EKG done prior just to make sure plus knowing your eyes, and heart are good before medical tends to help the blood pressure part during AME exam.