Spex4less and SPEX4LESS are registered trademarks of Fashion Specs Direct Limited. The term "sphere" refers to the fact that distance vision correction is spherical, or equal in all meridians of the eye. If you dont know whether you need a pair of glasses, the post How to Know If You Need Glasses? When no correction for SPH is required the optician will write "Plano", "", "0.00" or just leave the space blank. The sphere is measured in Dioptres, your prescription may have the word Plano or Pl or an infinity sign, this means that you are neither long nor short sighted but zero power for the Sphere, however you may have astigmatism a CYL and AXIS on your prescription. This post will explain them one by one. On the other hand, if your SPH value is +1.00, you are farsighted and need correction for seeing closer objects. SPH, or sphere, is the amount of lens power needed to correct nearsightedness or farsightedness, whereas CYL, or cylinder, is the amount of lens power needed to correct astigmatism. Knowing what they mean will also help you more easily discuss your prescription with your eye care professional. If a prescription includes cylinder power, it must be followed by an axis. Your eyeglass prescription contains other terms and abbreviations as well. If you have an astigmatism, you will find a "+" or "-" value in this box. It always follows the sphere power on an eyeglass prescription. What do sph, cyl and axis mean on an eye test? - HealthTap The store will not work correctly in the case when cookies are disabled. Do you know the meaning of the Sphere, Cylinder and Axis? Prism is used to correct eye alignment issues and can be a metric or fraction value. Our entire range of prescription glasses for Men. The Axis in your prescription is usually measured from 1 to 180. This correction is often used for computer (VDU) operation. Medically Reviewed by Dr. Melody Huang, O.D. A positive value, or a prescription with a plus-sign (+), means that your child is farsighted. How to Read My Eyeglasses Prescription- Eye Prescription Calculator The term "sphere" means that the correction for nearsightedness or farsightedness is "spherical," or equal in all meridians of the eye. Explained: Why do new glasses make you dizzy? In the horizontal meridian of the eyes, the number 180 is used. The number marked 'axis' describes the orientation of astigmatism. What is the difference between polarized and non-polarized lenses? 10 Signs You Need Glasses may be helpful. See, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Only one meridian will be adjusted to fix your astigmatism. In addition, you will see the initials OD and OS written on your eye prescription. A glasses prescription can be displayed in a number of ways. But keep in mind, all eyewear is different, so its just a general reference. [+/-Cylinder].axis [some angle between 0 and 180 degrees]. 'Sphere' is basically a measure of how strong your prescription needs to be. Axis is the direction in which the astigmatism . Add, Near Add, Reading Addition - These all relate to your reading addition and can be written anywhere on the prescription. Page published on Thursday, 21 February, 2019. Warby Parker has stylish, high-quality frames at affordable prices. Your Glasses Prescription Explained | Specsavers UK The AXIS, in degrees, is a number between 0 and 180. The images below show the same prescription information in two different formats. Eye Sphere, Cylinder and Axis - Snowy Range Vision Center This article will help you decipher all parts of your prescription and discuss it knowledgeably with an optician or when you buy eyeglasses online. On the prescription of eyeglasses, the cylinder typically follows the sphere power. What Does Sphere, Cylinder and Axis Mean? - Premier Eye Care & Surgery What the values on your prescription mean. The PRISM value will also be followed by a directional value (see BASE below). You'll notice the CYL and AXIS values are the same for both distance and near. "How to Read Your Eyeglass Prescription. The axis depicts the angle between two meridians. All Rights Reserved. Prism refers to the amount of prismatic power needed to correct eye alignment problems, measured in prism diopters. Our entire range of prescription glasses for Women. : r/glasses. What Do the Abbreviations on My Glasses Prescription Mean? How To Read An Eye Prescription | Jonas Paul Eyewear Kids' glasses and frames: A guide to fun children's eyewear. In SPH, the plus sign is the indication of farsightedness (near objects are blurred). If you cant make sense of your eyeglass prescription, youre not alone. We use cookies to give you a fantastic customer experience. Optometrists measure SPH values in increments of 0.25 diopters, and when people talk about their prescription degree, theyre usually talking about their sphere value. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. What does "SPH" appearing under Cylinder on my prescription mean? All frame measurements can be found in the details tab on our product pages. The bridge width will make sure your eyewear rest comfortably on the bridge of your nose, measuring the distance from the innermost point on each lens. What does SPH mean for glasses? Sitemap | All Prices are in USD, Exclusive Development Partner We aim to deliver within 1-7 days and we will always attempt to notify you of any delays. Impact resistance and prescription compliance with AS/NZS 1337.6:2010. In this case, the eye doctor has prescribed -2.00 D sphere for the correction of myopia in the right eye (OD). The number 90 corresponds to the vertical meridian of the eye, and the number 180 corresponds to the horizontal meridian. If your prescription indicates a CYL value, you must have a corresponding Axis value. EyeBuyDirect has a wide variety of budget frames starting at $6. Our entire range of mens sunglasses from only 19.97, Our entire range of womens sunglasses from only 19.97. The axis is defined with a number from 1 to 180. You're currently shopping our United States site. Did you get confused? The prism Rx will have two values: PRISM & BASE. The doctor wrote "SPH" in the Cylinder column. What does that mean. Cylinder (CYL) Cylinder indicates the amount of lens power needed for astigmatism. Add indicates the magnifying power applied to the bottom part of bifocal, multifocal, or progressive lenses used to correct presbyopia (age-related farsightedness). So what's an astigmatism? What does +1.00 sph mean on my eye prescription? - Quora With our 14-Day Fit & Style Guarantee, you can request a refund or exchange a new pair, hassle-free! COPYRIGHT document.write(new Date().getFullYear()); ZENNI OPTICAL , INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Below is a standard NHS prescription that has been written as two full lines of prescription: You can edit the form by clicking the link Need Help? On the off chance that the number showing up under this heading has a short sign . If the glasses help to improve the vision, then the person is not legally blind. This stops light from focusing properly on your retina and makes your vision blurry. Our online prescription form initially displays the most common format, Distance with a Near Add. For multi-focal glasses, as well as reading and computer glasses, your Rx will include an ADD or NV value. oBundle. If you have been provided with a BVD value ensure to enter it into the additional information or comments box provided with any online prescription forms. This correction is often used for driving, television and general wear (walking around). Axis refers to the lens meridian with no cylindrical power to correct astigmatism. JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. The BASE value will be displayed as BU or UP (Base UP), BD or DOWN (Base DOWN), BI or IN (Base IN) or BO or OUT (Base OUT). How to Read Your Prescription for Glasses - Rocket Eyewear What does Axis mean for glasses? What does sph mean on my eye prescription? | Firmoo Answers What does 1.50 mean on glasses? You've probably asked yourself many times, what does my glasses prescription mean? Unlike typical Rx formats, with values going from left to right, the vertical Rx values are listed top to bottom. When we look at the eye prescription written by our consultant, different questions come to mind. This number is always positive, even if it doesnt have a plus sign (+) in front of it. BVD- Back Vertex Distance is the distance required from the front of your eye (cornea) to the back surface of the corrective lens. The information on this free-form prescription is usually handwritten. They are abbreviations foroculus dexterandoculus sinister, which are Latin terms for right eye and left eye. This shows how much focal point power, estimated in diopters (D), endorsed to address myopia or farsightedness. If nothing appears in this column, either you have no astigmatism, or your astigmatism is so slight that it is not really necessary to . What is Cylinder in glasses? Plano, Infinity, 0.00, - Basically 0.00 or no correction is required for that part of the prescription. How to Measure your PD(Pupillary Distance), Choosing the Best Frames for Progressives, How to Replace Lenses in a Full-Rim Frame, How to Replace Lenses in a Half-Rim Frame. Axis is the angle in which the cylinder correction should be. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. OD is your right eye. How to Read Your Eyeglasses Prescription - All About Vision The cylinder is the indication of the condition, astigmatism, in which the cornea is shaped irregularly causing distorted or blurred vision. The SPH number on a glasses prescription is listed as a positive (+) or negative (-) number. There will also be a number in the axis column thats needed for astigmatism correction. The term sphere refers to the fact that distance vision correction is spherical, or equal in all meridians of the eye. Is 20/20 or 6 by 6 vision perfect eyesight? Older Post In AXIS, the lens meridian plays an important role. This figure is an indication of how much extra power is required on top of the distance prescription for near or intermediate glasses. What if my prescription does not follow the format on your website? The cylinder is the amount of power change from the sphere in one meridian. When the person has no astigmatism, the perfect eye shows 0 diopters. This doctor has elected to add "SPH," to confirm the right eye is being prescribed only spherical power. It is the distance from the centre of one pupil to the centre of the other pupil measured in mm (ranges from 50 to 70mm). How computer glasses can ease digital eye strain, How screen time effects child development, Importance of eye care and regular eye exams, What to expect at a comprehensive eye exam, Paediatric eye exam: How they are different. Now you know the ABCs and the ODs and OSs of your eyeglass prescription, so you can make sense of your eyeglass prescription. An AXIS will only be found on your prescription if there is a CYL value for the same eye. However, for complex prescriptions, such as when your SPH or CYL values fall beyond theaverage range, prescription orders can take up to9 days to complete because optical labs will need tomake custom-edgedlenses for you. If youre looking for eyeglasses that can bend without breaking, look great and enhance your vision all at o My manafest refraction test was -50 -50 110 + 250, But my rx reads -50 sph axis +250. A number between +/-.025 to +/-2.00 is considered mild, a number between +/-2.25 to +/- 5.00 is considered moderate, and a number greater than +/- 5.00 is considered severe. Base is the direction of a PRISM value and will only be supplied if the prescription has a PRISM value. Sphere means the spherical correction where the meridians of the human eye are equal. This means that a person can see the object clearly at 20 feet. Specific parts of Rx: To expand on dr. Proffitt's answer, sph = sphere; if this is a negative number, the prescription is a myopic or nearsighted prescription and a positive number dictates a farsighted or hyperopic prescription. If you see the "sph" in the "cyl" box . A Prism is to try and correct a lazy eye and indicates a more delicate condition, this is included with a prescription to correct some special conditions or some eye disorders (like squints) that require the focussed image to move position. This measurement is important as it explains at what distance your lenses should sit from your eyes. Balance - No values are required. On your eyeglasses prescription, the information for your right eye (OD) comes before the information for your left eye (OS). Your prescription may have a base column, or it may be included in the same column as prism this gives further information about the required prism correction, telling us the orientation needed in the lens. When you enter your prescription during checkout, please select "Not Applicable" for all Cylinder and Axis fields, thank you. SPH is one of the parameters to report your eye prescription. They may only write it once, but it normally applies to both eyes and is almost always the same value for both eyes (e.g. In the second part, we will explain what the Cylinder in glasses is. You will notice there is no CYL or AXIS for the left eye, this means there is no astigmatism present. When you hold the prescription, have you ever been curious to know what the number and letters mean for your eyesight? Home>Tips & Guides>How to Read an Eyeglass Prescription. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. How to choose the best lenses for your glasses, Photochromic lenses: Glasses that adjust to light, Special eyewear: Safety, driving and computer glasses, How to pick the right glasses for your face shape, Reading glasses: A buying guide for readers, Choosing glasses for your style and personality, Glasses size: A guide to eyeglasses frame size, Best places to buy eyeglasses/where to buy glasses, Why prescription sunglasses are a smart choice, How to prevent eye damage with UV sunglasses, Choosing the best sunglasses for your kids, The pros and cons of daily disposable contact lenses, Contact lens care: How to clean and store soft contacts, Understanding your contact lens prescription, Choosing the right coloured contact lenses, Contact lens tips: A user guide with expert advice. AXISAn AXIS will only be found on your prescription if there is a CYL value for the same eye. The 20/20 vision is the correct vision for normal eyes. The sphere is measured in Dioptre's, your prescription may have the word Plano or Pl or an infinity sign, this means that you are neither long nor short sighted but zero power for the Sphere, however you may have astigmatism - a CYL and AXIS on your prescription. SPH is the abbreviation for the word sphere. Cylinder power always follows Sphere power in an eyeglass prescription. How to Read Your Prescription for Glasses. What Does SPH mean? This is the most common format with clearly printed fields for OD, OS, SPH, CYL, etc. Clicking 'I have TWO complete rows of figures on my prescription" will open up new option boxes for you to open your prescription. All rights reserved. Contact us, Mon. Cylinder is the indication of the lens power amount that is basically needed for the eyes disease named astigmatism (blurred vision). Loved by Customers -64,000+ Trustpilot Reviews! . How to Read Eye Prescription | OD vs. OS | Eyebuydirect In some cases, the optician may write what appears to be a slash above the figure to indicate a "-" value.When no correction for SPH is required the optician will write "Plano", "", "0.00" or just leave the space blank. A contact lens prescription can only be obtained from a contact lens consultation and fitting. If the number is negative (), it means it is correcting nearsightedness. In the context of an eye prescription. How to Read Eye Prescription | OD vs. OS | Eyebuydirect A minus sign () means it's correcting nearsighted astigmatism, while plus sign(+) means it's correcting farsighted astigmatism. Nowadays, most of us wear glasses and most of us just take the prescription to the optical store to pick out a pair of glasses. If your SPH value is -1.00, you are nearsighted. The number under the OD and OS measurement in your prescription is measured in diopters. No, you cannot use your eyeglass prescription to buy contact lenses or vice versa because eyeglass lenses sit about 12 to 15 mm away from your eyes, whereas contact lenses are directly on your eyes. It will be a number between 1 and 180. Do not worry about entering your prescription details online. However, if you have a CYL value, you must have a corresponding Axis value. The PD/Pupillary Distance is generally measured during a sight test, but is not routinely written on a prescription, you can ask for this from your Opticians, or ask them to add it to your prescription when you are tested. The axis is defined with a number from 1 to 180. This indicates the amount of lens power for astigmatism. Get news, offers and hand-drawn stickers by Mila, our co-founder Shing's daughter! The less common prism Rx refers to the amount of prismatic power needed to compensate for eye alignment issues (e.g., double vision or lazy eye). How to enter your glasses prescription online. SPH, or sphere, refers to the amount of correction needed for nearsightedness or farsightedness. How Do You Keep Your Glasses From Fogging Up With A Ski Mask? A + in the box indicates that you are long-sighted which means you find it difficult to see things close to you. You can then go ahead and enter the prescription as follows: By clicking the link Need Help? A number with a minus symbol before it means you are nearsighted, and a number with a plus symbol, or no symbol, means you are farsighted. Checkout now! The Add, short for Reading Addition, is the additional correction required for reading, this can be used to make either reading glasses, bifocal glasses or Varifocal glasses. Terms of sale The doctor wrote "SPH" in the Cylinder column. If this is the case, your prescription will display SPH, CYL & AXIS values in both the "Distance" and "Near" sections of the prescription. On any prescription, PD can be written in different ways: e.g., 62 (Single PD), 33/31 (Dual PD), or 62/60 (Distance PD/Near PD). This instructs the person making your glasses to use a lens of similar weight to balance out the frame. ; values are usually entered with computer, but may be handwritten by doctor. They can also be written anywhere on the prescription. You may also have a column labeled OU, which means oculus uterque, or both eyes. Dist, refers to distance, this is the prescription required to correct distance vision. By continuing to shop we will assume you are happy to receive all cookies. Usually your lenses will be positioned around 10-12mm from your eyes, however this will vary from person to person. The lens power amount is, therefore, measured in D (diopters) for farsightedness or nearsightedness. A glasses prescription can be displayed in a number of ways. What does that mean. 6. All Opticians and Doctors worldwide work to the same procedures when writing a prescription, which can be printed or written in a similar fashion to this sample prescription. Now that you understand those mysterious letters and numbers, you know how to read a glasses prescription! The type of Rx glasses may be noted on a prescription, such as DV [Distance Vision/nearsightedness] and NV [Near Vision/reading]. What Does Sphere, Cylinder and Axis Mean? - Eye Associates of Tucson The two rows refer to your right (OD) and left (OS) eyeswith the right eye always on the upper row. Here at Spex4Less, you will find both of these options directly above the prescription form. If the number appearing under this heading has a minus sign (-), you . A number over 5 is generally considered to be on the stronger side. Cylinder, abbreviated CYL, follows sphere power in your eyeglass prescription. It is used to correctly orientate the cylinder correction when making your glasses. Diopter is the measurement used for the strength of eyeglass lenses. There are two vision conditions, nearsightedness, and farsightedness. The Pupillary distance is an essential measurement. By Email or 0330 165 6900, Site Map The size is not dangerous or bad, but the number associated with it (ex: Size: small, medium, large, extra-large etc.) The ADD value is also referred to as a "Near Addition" or "Reading Addition". This is always a "+" value in 0.25 steps. Eye Prescriptions (Meaning of SPH, CYL, AXIS) - Vision Center Should I get a second opinion? At first glance, the details may seem quite confusing. These glasses are often worn full time. What does sphere cylinder and axis mean? The base value will show either in or out, or up and down, indicating the direction the prism should be angled. Youll often see this terms on eyeglass prescriptions. This is only present if your eyes do not focus well together as a pair, such as in strabismus (eye turn). All About Vision and AllAboutVision.com are registered trademarks of AAV Media, LLC. The sphere (Sph) specifies the strength of lens required to correct your focus - a plus sphere to correct long-sightedness (hyperopic - difficulty focusing on close objects) and a minus to correct short sightedness (myopia - difficulty focusing on distant objects.). Copyright 2022 VisionCenter.org. Privacy, Eye Testing and Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT). United States Reply HELP for help and STOP to cancel. Posted by otakugrey. There is no astigmatism correction for this eye, so no cylinder power or axis is noted. If the optometrist wrote "DS" or "Sph" or "Spherical" in the Cylinder space, it indicates no correction and should be entered as 0 on the order form. This is the abbreviation for the Latin termoculus uterque, which means "both eyes.". It indicates the amount of lens power needed to correct astigmatism, measured in diopters. The doctor wrote "SPH" in the Cylinder column. Your optician may or may not write DS (Dioptres Sphere) in the CYL box. Sphere: The sphere (SPH) on your prescription indicates the lens power you need to see clearly. In the vertical meridian of the eyes, the number 90 is used. You should also find a row of values provided for "Distance" and for "Near". The lens power amount is, therefore, measured in D (diopters) for farsightedness or nearsightedness. The minus sign and the plus sign next to the Cylinder numbers are also for nearsightedness and farsightedness. Prism powers will always be accompanied with a direction which is usually seen as a base diresction such as IN, OUT, UP and DOWN; for example; Prism 2.00 Base IN. The axis is the astigmatism orientation. These are needed to tell us how to shape the lens so that it can accurately align the wearers eyesight. If you have been provided with a BVD value ensure to enter it into the additional information or comments box provided with any online prescription forms. It is not a condition, or disease. Sphere, Cylinder and Axis | Pendleton Eye | Oceanside The measurement is the Dioptre, and most values range from +0.50 to +3.50 and will go up in steps of 0.25. The sphere portion is a Continue Reading 6 1 Sponsored by TruthFinder Have you ever googled yourself? This means that the eyeball is spherical and has no oblongedness, and consequently has no Cylinder or Axis values. See below to learn the meaning of SPH, CYL Axis, Prism, PD, and more. The "Near" row or "Near Addition" contains the information required to correct your near vision. This means that a person can see the object clearly at 20 feet. Different Prescriptions and How to Enter Your Values On Our Site. By subscribing to Eyebuydirect text messaging on 81096, you agree to receive recurring autodialed marketing text msgs to the mobile number used at opt-in. What Do The Values On Your Prescription Mean? On the other hand, in the farsightedness, the person can see those objects clearly which are far but near object seems blurry. 1. However, there are other parameters, such as CYL which means the astigmatism part and AX which means the axis position in the astigmatism. Sphere (SPH) and Cylinder (CYL) always have a (+) or (-) sign. Click here if your prescription looks different to this form. as shown in the image below. How to read eye prescription? Sphere, often written as SPH, means that the correction for nearsightedness or farsightedness is spherical, equal in all meridians of the eye. Inter, Inter Add, Int Add, Int, Intermediate Addition- These all relate to your intermediate addition and are used to make glasses for intermediate distance use. Notable terms include: Sphere (SPH) - The term "sphere" means that the correction for nearsightedness or farsightedness is spherical, equal in all meridians of the eye. The number 90 means the vertical meridian of the eye and the number 180 means the horizontal meridian. Pro Tip - Make sure to pay particular attention to whether the values are a + or -. Most values range from 0.00 to +/- 20.00 and go up in steps of 0.25. In its simplest form, a prescription for glasses will feature a table with two rows and three columns. If you promise not to get in a petty snit, and let me explain why, I'll tell you the answer to your question. Do you know the meaning of the Sphere, Cylinder and Axis? Sphere, Cylinder, and Axis on Eye Prescriptions Sphere: The sphere (SPH) on your prescription indicates the lens power you need to see clearly. A sphero-cylindrical prescription (an Rx) for one eye consists of 3 parts, all written from left to right: [+/-Sphere]. You must be logged in to manage your wishlist. | A minus (-) symbol next to this number means you're nearsighted, and a plus (+) symbol means the prescription is meant to correct farsightedness. What does that mean. Click here if your prescription looks different to this form. like in the example above, you can toggle the form to enable you to enter an inter add as below; Balance- No values are required. Newer Post . The CYL basically represents the main differences in the weakest as well as greatest eye powers which are usually separated by degrees (90). Only a small amount of prescriptions will require a PRISM. Those individuals having 1.5 or more diopters will definitely need to use eyeglasses in order to correct the vision. Youll typically find the abbreviates OD and OS on the left side of your prescription. Astigmatism is often present at birth, but it can develop, or become more severe, as you get older. The Sphere is also used to correct the nearsightedness or farsightedness. If this column is blank, it means you have no astigmatism. When 180 is reached, the axis then starts over at 0. Cylinder power is always written after sphere power in an eyeglass prescription. This extra power will ALWAYS be the same for each eye and may only appear once on your prescription but it is understood to be meant for both eyes.