Ophthalmology

Abstract

True vision loss is always an emergency. Likewise, the red painful eye should always raise suspicion for an ophthalmic emergency. If there is ever a doubt, a same day ophthalmology consult is ideal; however, sometimes this is not easy to arrange. Furthermore, sometimes an immediate consult is not necessary, and the primary care clinician has time to give an initial treatment and follow the patient until ophthalmology consultation is available. Checking the patient’s vision with the Snellen chart in the office is often useful. Normal vision is a valuable piece of information and should always be documented. Checking the vision, however, is often problematic as many conditions cause “blurry” vision that causes inability to accurately assess the visual acuity. In this case, the clinician has to rely on other elements of the evaluation to decide on the course of action. The chapter is divided into two parts. Painful vision loss/impairment will be covered first followed by painless vision loss.