6 Signs That You May Need an Eye Screening

Often referred to as one of the countries with the highest rates of myopia in the world, Singapore isn't really a place where you should wait for signs before considering regular eye screening.

Despite that, many here only visit an eye care clinic when something already feels seriously wrong. The truth is that eyes can deteriorate gradually, to the point where warning signs are easy to dismiss.  

To ensure you can act sooner instead of later, here are the key signals that it’s time to book an eye screening in Singapore.

You Keep Getting Headaches After Screen Time

If you regularly end the day with a dull ache around your temples or forehead, your eyes may be working harder than they should. 

An uncorrected refractive error such as short-sightedness (myopia) or astigmatism can cause your eyes to work harder to focus, leading to visual strain and headaches.

Frequent headaches after reading, screen use, or close work are among the most commonly overlooked prompts for a vision check. Don’t ignore them!

You Find Yourself Squinting a Lot to Improve Vision

Squinting is actually a reflex action that most people take when trying to sharpen a blurry image. It creates a pinhole effect that reduces scattered light entering the eye, temporarily improving focus and making blurry images appear sharper.

If you find yourself squinting at road signs or even the television, your vision may have changed. It often means a new or updated prescription is in order. 

Your Night Vision Has Gotten Worse

Do you find yourself suddenly struggling with more tasks at nighttime? For example, does it now take more effort to make out lane markings on the road? Or are oncoming headlights “blinding” where they didn’t do that before?

These are actually early indicators of some eye ailments, most notably cataracts. This is when the eye’s clear natural lens starts to cloud over, leading to blurry vision. 

You’re Seeing Floaters or Flashes of Light

You’ve probably seen floaters before. They’re the tiny specks or squiggly lines drifting across your vision out of the blue. 

These are generally harmless. In most cases, they are caused by collagen fibres or tiny clumps within the vitreous gel casting shadows on the retina.

If you suddenly get a surge in them or see more of them accompanied by flashes of light in your vision, however, go to an eye doctor immediately. This is because that can be a signal of a retinal tear or retinal detachment. That qualifies as a medical emergency.

You Have Diabetes, Hypertension, or a Family History of Eye Disease

Having chronic ailments or a family history of eye disease actually means you should get eye screening regularly, not just when something seems to be off about your vision.

This is because a fair number of these ailments tend to increase your risk of developing certain eye diseases. Around one in four Singaporeans with diabetes has some degree of diabetic retinopathy, according to findings from the Singapore Epidemiology of Eye Diseases study.

At the same time, having a family history of some eye diseases predisposes you to developing them. This is true of issues like glaucoma.

You Can’t Remember Your Last Eye Check

This is probably one of the top signs that it’s time to get an eye screening again. Many serious eye conditions (like glaucoma, which we just mentioned) develop with nearly no symptoms at first.

By the time symptoms appear, some eye conditions may already have progressed significantly, making treatment more complex and increasing the risk of permanent vision loss.

Thus, it’s always better to discover these conditions earlier instead of later. Eye screenings can help you do that.