Pupil Dilation at Eye Exam - How long Does it Last? (blood pressure, surgery)
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It does vary from person to person, but I am told that people with light-colored eyes are more sensitive to the dilating solution. My eyes are very light colored, and so the doctor's assistant uses less of the solution on me to achieve the desired result. Still, it takes a good 6-8 hours for the dilation to wear off completely.
The problem with driving home after the appointment isn't so much that your vision is blurry. It's that the dilated eyes allow in much more light. If it's a sunny day (and I live in Florida, so it's usually a sunny day), it can be quite painful for me to keep my eyes open enough to see where I'm going. So I wear two pairs of sunglasses and I squint a lot.
As one having had their eyes dilated since I was very young, and now have lens implants, I can tell you it depends on the dilating solution and what they are dilating the eyes for...
Mine have been dilated to look and take pics of the very deep back part of the eyes.. I can neither drive nor do much of anything else after this...
When my eyes are dilated, the near vision is blurry, but the far vision is just fine. The worst is the brightness due to dilation. So I just put my contacts back in, put on my regular pair of sunglasses, and then put on the paper sunglasses the office provides. I've not had a problem. I"ve even driven in traffic this way, and I've been just fine.
Blue eyed blonde here and supposedly that makes a difference. I no longer allow them to
dilate my eyes because it makes me dizzy, nauseated and my eyes don't go back to normal for up to 8 hours.
Oh, great. I have blue eyes. I also already have a problem with dizziness and nausea, probably Meniere's disease. I don't need any more. Hopefully, I can get them to do the exam without dilation.
Find a different optometrist with the Optomap system so dilation won't be needed for the eye exam.
I might have to find another place. My insurance provider will cover about 70% of the eye exam if I go to an authorized ophthalmologist. I do have a couple of other choices.
I don't think you'll need to worry. The eyes will be dilated, not blurry, and subject to the aggravation of extreme brightness. The eye doctor should be giving you one of those cheap plastic dark eye lens cover so you can drive. The dilatation can last from 2-3 hours on the average.
I haven't had it done in quite a while. For some reason, (I think) I remember having blurred vision. On the other hand, I don't have a very good memory.
Blue eyed here also. But can drive immediately afterward. I do find the eyes to be very light sensitive so bring dark sunglasses with me. Takes a good- 3-4 hours before the eyes go back to normal. No dizziness, no blurry eyes.
My current optometrist said some will use more of the solution in order to dilate the pupils faster, saving time. The downside being it takes longer for the pupils to return to normal.
The blurry vision some experience is due to lack of depth of field, much like a camera lens.
I've worked as a Certified Ophthalmic Technician for several years, so I have a bit of knowledge to impart about the subject. The doc or technician normally puts two different drops in. The first opens your pupils up to prevent them from constricting when a light is shined in them; in other words, it temporarily interferes with the normal function of your eye). That's so the doc can check the health of your retina, optic nerve, and macula indirectly. The second drop keeps your pupil open a little while so the doctor has enough time to check it before it closes back up. Many people are OK with driving after pupil dilation because it makes just your near vision blurry, not your distance vision. If you aren't, just bring some lunch or a good book and you can hang out until you feel comfortable. Pupil dilation does make your eyes light sensitive, however, so you should wear some dark sunglasses if you go outside on a sunny day right after the eye exam. The doctor's office will offer you some sunglasses, but they suck, so bring your own. The dilation lasts most people 2-3 hours before reversing itself naturally.
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