How to read your eyeglass prescription

So, you've just had an eye exam and your eye doctor has given you an eyeglass prescription.
He or she probably mentioned that you
are nearsighted or farsighted, or perhaps you have astigmatism.

(If that's not the case, and you need an eye exam, find an eye doctor near you.)

But what do all those numbers on your eyeglass prescription mean? And what about all those
abbreviated terms, such as OD, OS, SPH and CYL?

This article will help you read and understand your eyeglass prescription so you can discuss it
with an optician when you buy new eyeglasses.

NEED AN EYE EXAM? Find an eye doctor near you, and use your FSA funds to cover the
cost of your eye exam or eyewear.

What OD and OS mean

The first step to understanding your eyeglass prescription is knowing what "OD" and OS"
mean. They are abbreviations for oculus dexter and oculus sinister, which are Latin terms
for "right eye" and "left eye."

Your eyeglass prescription also may have a column labeled "OU." This is the abbreviation for
the Latin term oculus uterque, which means "both eyes."

Though use of these abbreviated Latin terms is common on eyeglass prescriptions for
glasses, contact lenses and eye medicines, some doctors and clinics have opted to modernize
their eyeglass prescriptions and use RE (right eye) and LE (left eye) instead of OD and OS.

On your eyeglasses eyeglass prescription, the information for your right eye (OD) comes
before the information for your left eye (OS). Eye doctors write eyeglass prescriptions this way
because when they face you, they see your right eye on their left (first) and your left eye on
their right (second).

Other parts of your eyeglass prescription

Your eyeglass prescription contains other terms and abbreviations as well. These include:

Sphere (SPH). This indicates the amount of lens power, measured in

diopters

(D), prescribed to correct nearsightedness or farsightedness. If the number appearing under this
heading has a minus sign (–), you are nearsighted; if it has a plus sign (+), you are farsighted.
The term "sphere" means that the correction for nearsightedness or farsightedness is
"spherical," or equal in all

meridians of

the eye.
Cylinder (CYL). This indicates the amount of lens power for astigmatism. If nothing
appears in this column, you have little or no astigmatism that requires correction.

The term "cylinder" means that this lens power added to correct astigmatism is not spherical,
but instead is shaped so one meridian has no added curvature, and the meridian
perpendicular to this "no added power" meridian contains the maximum power and lens
curvature to correct astigmatism.

The number in the cylinder column may be preceded with a minus sign (for correction of
nearsighted astigmatism) or a plus sign (for farsighted astigmatism). Cylinder power always
follows the sphere power in an eyeglass prescription.

Meridians of the eye are determined by superimposing a protractor scale on the

eye's front surface. The 90-degree meridian is the vertical meridian of the eye,
and the 180-degree meridian is the horizontal meridian.

Axis. This describes the lens meridian that contains no cylinder power to correct astigmatism.
The axis is defined with a number from 1 to 180. The number 90 corresponds to the
vertical meridian of the eye, and the number 180 corresponds to the horizontal meridian.

If an eyeglass prescription includes cylinder power, it also must include an axis value, which
follows the cyl power and is preceded by an "x" when written freehand.

The axis is the lens meridian that is 90 degrees away from the meridian that contains the
cylinder power for astigmatism correction.

Add. This is the added magnifying power applied to the bottom part of multifocal lenses to
correct presbyopia. The number appearing in this section of the eyeglass prescription is
always a "plus" power, even if it is not preceded by a plus sign.
Generally, it will range from +0.75 to +3.00 D and will be the same power for both eyes.

Prism. This is the amount of prismatic power, measured in prism diopters ("p.d." or a
superscript triangle when written freehand), prescribed to compensate for eye alignment
problems. Only a small percentage of eyeglass prescriptions include prism.

When present, the amount of prism is indicated in either metric or fractional English units
(0.5 or ½, for example), and the direction of the prism is indicated by noting the relative
position of its "base" (thickest edge). Four abbreviations are used for prism direction: BU =
base up; BD = base down; BI = base in (toward the wearer's nose); BO = base out
(toward the wearer's ear).

Sphere power, cylinder power and add power always appear in diopters. They are in decimal
form and generally are written in quarter-diopter (0.25 D) increments.
Axis values are whole numbers from 1 to 180 and signify only a meridional location, not a
power. When prism diopters are indicated in decimal form, typically only one digit appears
after the period (e.g., 0.5).

Additional Information. Your eye doctor also might write specific lens recommendations
on your eyeglass prescription — such as anti-reflective coating, photochromic lenses and/or
progressive lenses — to give you the most comfortable vision correction possible.

An example of an eyeglass prescription

Confused? Let's use an example to clear things up. (Yes, pun intended.) Here is a

sample eyeglass prescription:

OD -2.00 SPH +2.00 add 0.5 p.d. BD

OS -1.00 -0.50 x 180 +2.00 add 0.5 p.d. BU

In this case, the eye doctor has prescribed -2.00 D sphere for the correction of myopia in
the right eye (OD). There is no astigmatism correction for this eye, so no cylinder power
or axis is noted. This doctor has elected to add "SPH," to confirm the right eye is being
prescribed only spherical power. (Some doctors will add "DS" for "diopters sphere;" others
will leave this area blank.)

The left eye (OS) is being prescribed -1.00 D sphere for myopia and -0.50 D cylinder for
the correction of astigmatism. The cyl power has its axis at the 180 meridian, meaning the
horizontal (180-degree) meridian of the eye has no added power for astigmatism and the
vertical (90-degree) meridian gets the added -0.50 D.

Both eyes are being prescribed an "add power" of +2.00 D for the correction of presbyopia.

This eyeglass prescription also includes prismatic correction of 0.5 prism diopter
in each eye. In the right eye, the prism is base down (BD); in the left eye, it's base up
(BU).

An eyeglass prescription cannot be used to buy

contact lenses
Eyeglass and contact lens eyeglass prescriptions aren't the same. An eyeglass prescription
is for the purchase of eyeglasses only. It does not contain certain information that is crucial
to a contact lens eyeglass prescription and that can be obtained only during a contact lens
consultation and fitting.

Eyeglass lenses are positioned at a distance from the eyes, while contacts rest
directly on the eyes. That distance affects the lens power required for eyes to
focus properly.

In addition to the information in an eyeglass prescription, a contact lens eyeglass

prescription must specify the base (central) curve of the back surface of the contact lens,
the lens diameter, and the specific manufacturer and brand name of the lens.

Also, the power of an eyeglass prescription frequently is modified when determining the
best contact lens power. This is because eyeglass lenses are worn some distance (usually
about 12 millimeters) from the surface of the eye, whereas contact lenses rest directly on the
cornea of the eye.

An accurate contact lens eyeglass prescription can be written only after a contact lens fitting
has been performed and the prescribing doctor has evaluated your eyes' response to the lenses
and to contact lens wear in general.

SEE ALSO: Differences Between Contact Lens and Eyeglass prescriptions >

Your eyeglass prescription: It's yours to keep

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is the U.S. government's consumer
protection agency. In 1980, the FTC's Eyeglass prescription Release Rule became law. This
rule requires eye doctors to give patients a copy of their eyeglass prescription at the end of an
eye exam that includes a

refraction

.
The Eyeglass prescription Release Rule is intended to allow the "portability" of your
eyeglass prescription so you have the ability to buy glasses from the vendor of your choice.

Your eye doctor must give you a copy of the eyeglass prescription whether or not you ask for it.
Eye doctors may not condition the release of your eyeglass prescription on your agreement
to purchase eyeglasses from them, nor may they charge you an extra fee to release your
eyeglass prescription. They also may not disclaim liability for the accuracy of the eyeglass
prescription if you purchase eyeglasses elsewhere.

Eye doctors who violate the provisions of the Eyeglass prescription Release Rule are subject
to a civil penalty of $10,000 per violation.

How (And Where) To Buy Eyeglass

prescription Glasses Online
Ever heard of a brand called Warby Parker? Us too. They basically broke the eyeglass industry a
few years back by offering eyewear at unprecedentedly low prices, online only. Since then, several
other companies have followed in their footsteps. To help you navigate what the online eyewear
market looks like now, we've rounded up just how and where to buy eyeglass prescription glasses
online.

Get Your Eyeglass prescription

Sorry — for this step you'll actually have to interact face to face with other humans. Visit a local
optometrist and go through the process of updating your eye eyeglass prescription. Make sure you
find out your pupillary distance (PD), the horizontal distance across your face between your two
pupils. It's possible to figure out your PD yourself using online
resources, but it's always easier to just hand that task over to the experts. Where To Find

Glasses Online

You can browse an infinite variety of eyeglasses on an infinite number of websites

these days —there's no lack of options in this arena. And while it's convenient to have the product
delivered directly to your doorstep, picking out the perfect pair can be daunting. Many eyewear
sites will guide you through this process, offering tutorials on exactly how to pick out the perfect
frames for you, including what frames fit your face shape best, and how to utilize your insurance and
send in your eyeglass prescription. After all, these frames are an important purchase — they'll soon
become a part of your daily life. But overall, don't sweat it: Brands are constantly getting smarter
and offering more educational tools to help you make the right decision.

Check The Return Policy

This may seem like a no brainer, but sometimes it's easy to forget. Checking the return policy is
crucial because a piece of eyewear is such a personal purchase. They're on your face, they're how
you see the world. Luckily, most sites are sympathetic to this and have generous return policies.

Warby Parker Warby

Parker
WARBY PARKER

There are so many reasons to love Warby Parker. For starters, its site offers educational tools on how
to choose the right lenses for you, which include a short quiz on how to pick your frames, and take
your insurance, personal budget, PD and eyeglass prescription into account. Warby Parker's home
try-on kit allows you to pick five frames to try for five days, then return the ones you don't want with
the already provided prepaid label. The company also offers the Buy A Pair, Give A Pair program,
through which it donates a pair of glasses to someone in need for every pair sold.

Overnight Glasses

If you need glasses fast and hassle-free, Overnight Glasses is where you turn. The company ships
your glasses in as fast as 24 hours and offers a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee with a no
questions asked return policy. A plethora of tools and customer reviews on the Overnight Glasses
site can help you make an informed decision.

Eyeconic carries a vast array of designer frames for you to choose from. Through its site, you can
connect to a doctor to obtain a eyeglass prescription and have your PD measured, and it's the only
place that allows you to purchase frames straight through your vision
insurance.Eyebuy Direct does all of its designing in-house to create affordable eyewear. Its site
offers education on how to purchase eyewear and read a eyeglass prescription and has a variety of
programs, from referrals and loyalty to affiliates and student discounts. Eyebuy Direct also partners
with two charities, Feed the Children and The Lions Club, for eyewear donations.