We do some of these exact tests in the office and it gives us valuable information on how your eyes are doing.

By the way, I'm Dr. Michael Chua.

I'm a board-certified ophthalmologist with Pentehills Eye Care, and I make videos to help you see better, look better, and feel better.

Okay, let's start.

Here's our first test.

This is what's called an astigmatic dial.

If you wear glasses, go ahead and take them off.

What you want to do is cover one eye at a time.

Let's start by covering our right eye.

You want to stare right at the center of the circle.

All the lines radiate outwards, kind of like spokes on a wheel.

How does it look to you?

Are all the lines sharp and clear?

Is there a certain section of lines that appear more gray or out of focus?

Which lines appear more clear to you?

Okay, so now let's cover the left eye and try it again.

How do all the lines look?

Nice and sharp?

Are there certain lines that are a little bit more fuzzy?

If you notice that some of the lines were more clear, but other ones were more blurry, then that might be a sign that you have astigmatism.

So what's astigmatism?

Basically, the cornea or the front of the eye is normally round like a ball, but in some people, the shape is more oval, like an egg.

If the shape of your cornea looks kind of like an egg sitting up, that's what we call against the rule of astigmatism.

But if it looks more like an egg on its side, then that's what we call with the rule of astigmatism.

Patients with with the rule of astigmatism will see that the vertical lines are sharper and the horizontal lines are more fuzzy, while patients with against the rule of astigmatism will see that the horizontal lines are more clear and the vertical lines are more blurry.

How did you do?

No time to waste.

We're on to test number two.

This is what's called the Ishihara color vision test.

For this test, you'll want to cover one eye at a time.

Let's start by covering our right eye.

Okay, so what number do you see here?

Try to remember it.

Okay, what about this one?

We'll also remember this one.

Okay, what about this one?

What number do you see?

And last one, do you see any numbers here or no?

Okay, so let's check your results.

For the first one, you should have seen the number 74.

For the second one, the correct number was 97.

For number three, the correct number was 16.

And for the last one, there shouldn't be any numbers there.

If you couldn't see any of the first three numbers, or if the last plate you saw the number 73, then you probably have some form of color blindness, so definitely go get that checked out.

You can also go back and repeat this test on the other eye if you want to double check.

Okay, next test.

This one checks your color contrast sensitivity.

Pick which one out of the 10 colors is different from the rest.

Okay, that last one was really difficult.

How did you do?

Sometimes if patients have an optic nerve issue, they'll mention that colors don't seem as vibrant.

A classic presentation of this we see in the office is in multiple sclerosis or MS.

In these cases, patients who are previously undiagnosed with MS come in to see their eye doctor with complaints of pain with eye movements and blurry vision in one eye.

They'll mention that colors almost seem grayed out.

And when I show them something red,

I usually use the red cap on one of our dilating eyedrop bottles.

They say, yeah, that kind of looks pink to me.

So when I hear that, I worry about the status of their optic nerve because patients with multiple sclerosis can get inflammation of their optic nerve, a condition we call optic neuritis.

This causes colors to be dulled out or what we call desaturated.

Before we go on to the next eye test,

I wanted to tell you about my optimized newsletter.

If you want science-backed tips on how to protect your vision and health, delivered straight to your inbox, you can sign up for my optimized newsletter at michaelchuaMD.com.

Okay, back to the tests.

This one is called a visual field test.

We perform this test very commonly in patients with glaucoma.

That's because in glaucoma, the peripheral vision can get damaged.

So we can measure the health of your peripheral vision by doing a visual field test.

How these visual field tests work is you cover one eye.

Let's start by covering our right eye and look at the target in the center of the screen.

It's important that you keep your eye focused on that central target.

You don't want to move your eye all over the place because if you move your eye around, then we're not really sure we're testing your peripheral vision anymore.

And so as you're staring centrally, the test will flash small lights in your peripheral vision.

Now, it depends on how close you are to your screen, but you basically want to make this video test nice and big in your visual field.

So you might have to get a little bit closer to your screen.

In the office, you press a button whenever you see the flashes.

But for this home test, let's have you count how many flashes you see.

Let's start.

How many lights did you see? If you saw 11, you got them all.

You can also try the same test with your other eye.

Okay, here's our last test.

This one is called an AMSR grid, and this is a common test we use to screen for macular degeneration.

How this test works is you cover one eye at a time and stare at the center of the grid.

All the lines should be straight and uniform.

You shouldn't see any areas that are blurred or blocked out.

Those are called scotomas and may be a sign of a vision problem.

The other worrisome sign is if the lines appear wavy or as if they're underwater.

This is called metamorphopsia and may be a sign that you have swelling in your retina from wet macular degeneration.

You can look at the AMSR grid first with your right eye covered, then take a look with your left eye covered. Are all the lines nice and straight and sharp?

Okay, I hope you find these vision tests fun and interesting.

Just a quick disclaimer, these vision tests do not in any way replace a comprehensive eye exam with your eye doctor.

The tests and examinations we do in the office are much more precise and accurate in diagnosing eye conditions.

But some of these at-home tests are still really useful screening tools that you can do in the comfort of your own home.

If you live in the Los Angeles, Orange County, or Inland Empire area and want an eye exam, feel free to visit our website or give our phone number a call to make an appointment today.

And don't forget to subscribe to the channel for future updates.

And if you made it this far into the video, that means you're probably really interested in maintaining your vision and health.

You can watch my video here to learn about some of the best ways to prevent macular degeneration.

I'm Dr. Michael Chua with Planet Heal Thigh Care.

See you next time.