Our Services

For best care of your eyes and vision we recommend a yearly examination. During your comprehensive eye examination your doctor will assess the health and function of your eyes and perform various tests of your vision. Our eye exams are oriented to solving your problems by carefully listening to you, the patient.

Your doctor will start the eye examination by identifying your vision or eye complaints and by reviewing your general and eye health history.

We will measure your visual acuity (the sharpness of your vision) and perform tests to determine your eyeglass prescription, if any.

We will test your eye muscle coordination and focusing ability. We will also include various tests of your eye health, which allow us to detect such diseases as glaucoma, cataracts, and retina and optic nerve abnormalities.

To inspect the inner structures of your eyes, including the retinas and optic nerve, two methods that can be used:

1. You may be most familiar with dilating eye drops, which cause the iris to open wide, giving the doctor a good view of the internal structures of the eye. The effects of the dilating drops usually begin to subside after a few hours; however, it is wise to bring good sunglasses to help you see in bright sunlight following a dilated eye exam. While your eyes are dilated, close work or reading may be difficult, and bright sunlight may be annoying.
2. A new diagnostic tool, called Optomap allows the doctor to view the retinas without the use of pupil dilation. There are many benefits to using Optomap.

After performing these tests your doctor will discuss your results, explain your prescription and give you a better understanding of your overall eye health. Options such as eye glasses, contact lenses, vision therapy, eye medications, or eye surgery will be presented. Your doctor will determine if you need to wear corrective lenses. To understand your need for corrective lenses, you need to understand how your eyes work.

Our doctors take time to listen to the patients, to perform all necessary procedures, and to advise them on the best treatment alternatives. If we believe that further expertise is necessary we will refer you to the appropriate eye or other medical specialist for further evaluation or a second opinion. We don't just take care of your eyes, we treat you as a complete individual.

Our doctors perform diagnosis and treatment of a variety of eye conditions and diseases including, but not limited to: pink eye, blepharitis, styes, corneal abrasions, corneal swelling, corneal ulcers, embedded foreign bodies, dry eyes, iritis and uveitis, episcleritis, eye allergy, blocked tear ducts, ingrown eyelashes, keratoconus, contact lens related complications, eye pain, flashes and floaters, color blindness, double vision, etc.

We also provide diagnosis, consultation, and referral to a specialist, if necessary, of such conditions as cataract, glaucoma, retinal detachment, macular degeneration, optic nerve diseases, and eye complications related to a variety of systemic diseases such as diabetes, thyroid disease, high blood pressure, vascular diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, etc.**

We provide emergency eye care during business hours, and, if necessary, after hours and on weekends. We render in-office treatments of eye infections and corneal ulcers, certain eye traumas, foreign body removal, acute eye allergies, etc. In addition, we provide necessary consultations and triage with emergency trauma and retinal specialists, if necessary. If indicated, we will contact the pharmacy to order your prescription medication. Our emergency care is affordable, and in many instances is covered by your medical insurance.

Our doctors at Sacramento Contact lenses and Optometry have great expertise in fitting all types of contact lenses for all types of patients. Our contact lens patients range in age from infants to nonagenarians, and from routine to most complicated cases that travel to see us from other states and from overseas. Our expertise, experience, and careful attention to individual's needs and challenges enables us to deliver optimal contact lens fitting to our patients.

We carry the largest inventory of contact lenses for immediate fitting or replacement. Custom made gas permeable contact lenses often can be delivered within a day or two. We can polish or modify your rigid gas permeable contact lenses while you wait. We also carry an extensive inventory of contact lens supplies and solutions.

Certain medical conditions such as keratoconus, aphakia, irregular astigmatism due to corneai diseases or unsuccessful refractive surgeries , high anisometropia, aniridia, and a variety of eye deformities may require highly specialized contact lens fitting and care. Our patients wear a variety of very sophisticated contact lenses: toric, bi-toric, aspheric, reverse geometry, piggy-back, multifocal toric, etc. The evaluation for and fitting of these contact lenses demand extra knowledge, time and care. If your condition requires that you wear any of these specialized types of contact lenses, you will be comfortable knowing that your doctors at Sacramento Contact Lenses and Optometry have great expertise and years of experience in fitting of these highly specialized and medically necessary contact lenses. Eye practitioners from the Sacramento area and from across the state recognize our expertise in specialty contact lenses and refer these complicated cases to us.

Doctors at Sacramento contact Lenses and Optometry utilize an advanced procedure, known as corneal topography in diagnosis treatment and follow-up of corneal abnormalities. Corneal topography is a procedure that maps the surface curvature of the cornea, similar to making a contour map of land. The cornea is a clear membrane that covers the front of the eye and is responsible for about 70 percent of the eye's focusing power. To a large extent, the shape of the cornea determines the visual ability of an otherwise healthy eye. A perfect eye has an evenly rounded cornea, but if the cornea is unevenly curved, less than perfect vision often results.

The purpose of corneal topography is to produce a detailed description of the shape and power of the cornea. Using computerized imaging technology, the 3-dimensional map produced by the corneal topographer aids an eye specialist in the diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of various visual conditions.

The procedure itself is painless, brief and inexpensive. It is a non-contact examination that photographs the surface of the eye using ordinary light. The greatest advantage of corneal topography is its ability to detect conditions invisible to most conventional testing.

Corneal topography is not a routine test. Rather, it is used in diagnosing certain types of problems, in evaluating a disease's progression, in fitting some types of contact lenses, and in planning surgery. It is commonly used in preparing for laser vision correction (LVC). The corneal topography map is used in conjunction with other tests to determine exactly how much corneal tissue will be removed to correct the visual defect.

Corneal topography is used in the diagnosis and management of various corneal curvature abnormalities and diseases such as:

1. Keratoconus, a degenerative condition that causes a thinning of the cornea and whose early presence or mild cases can only be diagnosed using this procedure
2. Corneal transplants
3. Corneal scars or opacities
4. Corneal deformities
5. Fitting of contact lenses, especially in certain complicated cases
6. Irregular astigmatism following corneal transplantation
7. Planning refractive surgery
8. Postoperative cataract extraction with acquired astigmatism

If your case calls for the use of this procedure, we will perform it on the spot, without the need for prior appointment.

For the patients interested in or desiring laser vision correction (LVC), we provide suitability evaluations and consultations and pre- and post-operative care. Hundreds of our patients have undergone laser vision correction. By carefully screening the patients and educating them on the rewards and risks of the eye laser surgery.

Unlike majority of eye care providers, our doctors have no financial interest in any of the laser centers, so they can provide you with the unbiased opinion. We have only your interest in mind when advising you on the suitability of the LVC for you, or referring you to a specific surgeon or a laser center.

Good vision is critical for your child's physical and academic development. Our doctors recommend all children receive comprehensive vision care during their first few years of life. Many conditions could possibly impede normal visual development. Functional vision is essential for fine and gross motor development, language development, social skills, as well as academic achievement and sports participation. By detecting vision abnormalities and treating them early, we ensure that your child can have normal visual function so critical during their developmental and academic years. A pediatric eye and vision examination is quite different from that given to adults.

During your child's comprehensive examination, a variety of objective methods are utilized to assess eyes and vision and rule out the presence of specific diseases that may be present in children. In addition, the pediatric vision exam includes tests for assessment of a child's binocularity (eye teaming skills), and ocular motility (eye movement abilities or tracking). Deficits in binocularity can result in symptoms such as double vision, eyestrain, and headaches. Accommodative problems affect a child's ability to maintain focus or efficiently shift focus from distance to near or visa-versa (such as changing focus from the blackboard to the desk top and back). Difficulties in ocular motility can result in loss of place while reading and need to re-read materials.

Two of the most important conditions to diagnose early are strabismus (eye turn inward or outward) and amblyopia (what is inappropriately termed lazy eye). Strabismus is found in approximately 3% of the population and amblyopia is found in over 6% of the population. These two conditions often go undetected early in childhood unless a child receives a comprehensive pediatric eye examination. Early detection is key for successful intervention, which often cures these conditions. Our doctors are highly trained and experienced in the diagnosis and management of strabismus and amblyopia. In fact, Dr. Shlyakhov, was one of the professors at Strabismus and Children's Vision Clinic at UC Berkeley School of Optometry, and has published research papers on the subject of strabismus and amblyopia while Drs. Smiley and Patrick have had extensive training and experience in diagnosing and treating binocular problems in children.

In summary, vision problems can impair academic performance. If your child is having difficulties at school (reading, writing, comprehension, etc.), he/she may have a deficit in visual processing and visual perception. Based on information provided during the pediatric eye examination, we may recommend further testing in the area of visual processing and perception.

Our doctors recommend that all children receive a pediatric eye examination by age 5 as a baseline. Evaluation at an earlier age is suggested if you suspect your child may have an eye or vision problem.

Eyeglasses are an optical device as well as a fashion accessory. The current trends in contemporary eyewear are sleek frames in new and interesting colors. Lightweight and flexible materials such as modern plastics and titanium allow for wonderful colors and materials that can be fabricated into unusual and stylish shapes. High tech lens materials offer a multiple of options for the very best vision possible.

At our beautiful optical department we offer a wide variety of both frames and lenses. Our board certified opticians will assist you in the selection of your frames to fit your face and your style as well as your prescription. Our opticians are skilled in assessing your specific vision needs and matching your needs to the great variety of lens and frame options available today.

Our full service in-office laboratory can fabricate most prescriptions in a very short period of time without sacrificing quality. We realize that a spectacle prescription written by your doctor is only as good as the glasses that are made from that prescription. We provide access to the most current lens designs available today which improve both cosmetic appearance, patient acceptance and visual function. Designs such as super thin high index lens materials, progressive addition or "no-line" bifocal lenses, lenses with anti-reflective coating, "transitions" lenses, polarized lenses. allow us to satisfy a wide variety of visual needs of our patients. And our great selection of over 1,000 contemporary and designer frames allows our patients to both see great and look great with their glasses from Sacramento Contact Lenses and Optometry.

Some pricey brand name sunglasses in the malls or department stores don't always offer better eye protection or even the basic vision comfort for your eyes. A lot of the cost of those sunglasses is in the brand or designer name of the frame. At Sacramento Contact Lenses and Optometry our optical departments carry a wide variety of sunglasses, from the budget ones to the most exquisite designer names. We ensure that our sunglasses not only look great but also offer the highest UV and glare protection to the eyes, the best optical quality and eye comfort.

Visit our Sunglasses page for more details.

For our patients who are involved in sports such as skiing, swimming, racquetball, tennis, basketball, shooting, bicycling, and golfing we perform extended visual testing and offer a wide variety of highly specialized eyewear and contact lenses. Our optical departments carry extensive selection of sports goggles, custom lenses andframes to help our patients in their sporting endeavors. We want you to have every advantage in your sports and recreation.