Way To Go, Optometrist Shawn!
Recently during an eye test, optometrist Shawn Loh found that half of the vision in a patient's right eye was blurry. That, compounded with her complaint of transient headaches, triggered warning bells for Shawn, who immediately performed a confrontation test (visual field screening) to investigate further. He realised that the patient was unable to see a particular quadrant in her visual field, and immediately diagnosed her condition as hemianopia or hemanopsia, a visual field defect usually caused by strokes, brain tumors and trauma.
A hemianopia patient's vision may look something like the lower picture, or halved horizontally or vertically. (Picture courtesy of UCLA.)
Shawn immediately prepared a referral for the patient to see an ophthalmologist, and received this commendation for his swift and accurate diagnosis:
Way to go, Shawn! (Patient details removed for confidentiality.)
Treatments for patients suffering from hemianopia range from vision therapy to surgery and radiotherapy for more serious cases. This particular patient was sent for an MRI scan of her brain and pituitary fossa. We are very proud of Shawn, who is based at our Parkway Parade location as well as boutique The Eye Site, as we are of all our optometrists, for their attention to detail, top-notch skills and resourceful experience. Regular patients and customers know that eye tests in our optical practices aren't just about getting prescriptions for their glasses and contact lenses, but a holistic check-up that can help our eye care practitioners determine everything from eye health issues to recommending specific vision correction solutions for individual needs. This may take a little more chair time in the consultation room, but we're more than happy to provide this value-added care - in fact, we highly recommend annual eye examinations for a peace of mind as many eye diseases often carry no symptoms until they get serious. Not only can they lead to complications such as eventual blindness, many serious illnesses such as diabetes, hypertension, Alzheimer's disease and tumors are first detected through eye exams.
Optometrist Shawn Loh, also a half-marathoner and parrot whisperer - a man of many talents!
Learn more about our eye exams here - to make an appointment with one of our friendly and caring optometrists - just give your favorite The Lens Men location or The Eye Site a call!