Comprehensive Eye Exams in Washington

Comprehensive Eye Exams in Washington

Enjoy Clear & Healthy Vision For a Lifetime

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Your Vision. Your Future.

Is your child having a hard time seeing the board in class?

Do you struggle to read fine-print in books and menus?

Regular comprehensive eye exams involve a series of tests that enable your Washington eye doctor to check your eye health and vision. This type of eye exam can only be performed by an eye doctor, and shouldn’t be confused with the vision screenings given in schools or other non-professional settings.

Having regular comprehensive eye exams is crucial when it comes to protecting your eyes from sight-threatening diseases, and ensuring that your optical prescription is up-to-date.

A comprehensive eye exam can also reveal signs of a general health condition like diabetes, hypertension or high cholesterol.

Contact our eye care clinic today to schedule your comprehensive eye exam today!

man rubbing eye


Why Is It Important to Get Your Eyes Tested Regularly?

Eye Exam Asian Man Rubs Eye

Comprehensive eye exams are an important part of maintaining great vision and eye health for the entire family.

During your eye exam, your eye doctor will check for any refractive errors or visual skill deficiencies that may hinder development or learning, and diagnose, manage, and treat eye diseases and conditions, including glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy or macular degeneration that can cause severe vision loss in adults.

Many of these sight-robbing conditions show little to no symptoms until they’ve already caused learning difficulties, significant damage to the eye, and/or irreversible vision loss. Routine eye exams ensure early diagnosis and treatment of these and other conditions.


What to Expect From Your Eye Exam

  • Glasses/contact lens prescription updates

    We'll provide you with an updated prescription so that you can see clearly. Some people require a new prescription every year, whereas others only need a new prescription every 2-3 years.

  • Evaluating your child’s vision for learning

    Conditions such as strabismus and amblyopia, and visual skill deficiencies such as convergence insufficiency can negatively impact your child’s learning.

  • Diagnosis & treatment of eye diseases

    Eye diseases such as glaucoma, macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy may show no symptoms until it’s too late. The earlier the treatment, the more effective the outcome.

  • Rule out signs of systemic diseases

    Common systemic diseases such as diabetes and stroke can first be detected in the eyes as part of a comprehensive eye exam.


Book An Eye Exam At Metropolitan Optical – Pennsylvania Ave. Today


Comprehensive Eye Exams FAQs

Is a comprehensive eye exam the same as a vision screening?

No. Vision screenings like the one performed for children in school or at optical-only stores only check for 20/20 vision. They do not check for the presence of sight-threatening eye diseases such as glaucoma, macular degeneration or cataracts. They also do not check for visual skill deficiencies such as problems with visual tracking or processing. Comprehensive eye exams are more thorough and use advanced equipment to evaluate your vision and eye health.

How often should I get an eye exam?

Eye doctors usually recommend that you come in for a comprehensive eye exam at least once a year. This ensures that your glasses or contact lens prescription stays up to date and that signs and symptoms of developing eye conditions are caught early before they cause lasting damage.

When should I bring my child in for their first comprehensive eye exam?

It’s important not to delay eye exams for young infants and children as some early eye problems can affect vision for life. Detecting vision problems early can keep a minor issue from becoming something serious (and more challenging to treat).

Want to get your children off to a good start in life? Visit Metropolitan Optical – Pennsylvania Ave. for an eye exam today!


Meet our Comprehensive Eye Exams Specialists

Patient Reviews
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172 Reviews
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- Mar. 28, 2025
I've been coming to Metropolitan Optical for many, many years and always received excellent service ... and advice. Dr. Ayalu is terrific!
- Mar. 24, 2025
Metropolitan Optical has been handling my eye care needs for almost 20 years. The best eye specialis... ts in the Washington, DC , Maryland and Virginia area. Please make appointment and you will understand why. Very prompt, courteous and knowledgeable staff.
- Mar. 08, 2025
Highly recommend Metropolitan Optical for anyone looking for an eye-doctor or new frames! It is evid... ent how Dr. Ayalew cares for her patients -- always making sure to squeeze us in because she prioritizes our health. She takes time to explain what's going on and makes sure to develop a care plan that is realistic. The rest of the team are just awesome -- from spending time to make sure that your frames fit and look perfect to making sure that you are scheduled for your next appoint
- Feb. 27, 2025
Have been coming here for over 3 years and it’s great! Wonderful and knowledgeable staff.
- Jan. 14, 2025
Dr Salsa Ayalew is great. She is very patient and clearly communicates what is going on during the ... exam and the appropriate next steps. Dee is also great with helping to select great frames and is responsive to style and pricing concerns.
- Jan. 03, 2025
High professionalism and courtesy.
- Oct. 20, 2024
Excellent care from Dr Saba and excellent customer service
- Oct. 18, 2024
Great place for my eye care! Very satisfied.
- Sep. 14, 2024
Top Tier service is always received at every level when I visit Metropolitan Optical!
- Sep. 13, 2024
Doctor and every staff are very friendly and good customers service, also they explain every step un... til you get discharge. Excellent
- Sep. 13, 2024
Dr. Ayalew and every staff member give the highest quality customer service.
- Aug. 30, 2024
Great professional optical services. I’ve purchased prescription glasses twice with Metropolitan ... in last year. Customer service is excellent. High quality and reasonably priced frames. Paul at the Penn Ave shop most recently helped me with selecting non-slip prescription glasses for working out. Very happy with them and the Lunor glasses purchased in 2023.
- Nov. 07, 2023
Dr. Ayalew is an exceptional eye doctor who goes above and beyond for her patients. I recently had a... n eye emergency on a Sunday night and emailed her, she replied st 5 am instructing me to come in first thing in the morning. I know she squeezed me in because I was unable to schedule the appointment online. Upon arriving I was literally greeted at the door and taken straight to the exam room. (I’m sure this isn’t always the case so I don’t want to build any unrealistic expectations, same goes for emailing on a Sunday night, but this was my experience today so I’m just sharing factual events) Dr. Ayalew thoroughly examined my eyes, patiently explaining the condition and answering all my questions. Her expertise and genuine concern for my well-being are always evident at my appointments. My insurance switched a few years ago and metropolitan optical doesn’t take my new insurance but Dr Ayalew is so good I go to her anyway and pay out of pocket, money speaks louder than words — this is greatest endorsement I could give any doctor. Over the past 25 years living in DC, I've consulted with several optometrists. Without a doubt, Dr. Ayalew stands out as the best in my opinion. Her combination of expertise, compassion, and patient-centric approach is unmatched. I highly recommend her to anyone seeking exceptional eye care
- Sep. 26, 2023
Love this place! Everyone is professional and has their masks on. They are able to repair my glasses... within 10 minutes. Will recommend this place to anyone in DC area.
- Sep. 23, 2023
I simply do not understand the negative comments about the staff. I will chalk it up to a bad day. H... ave been seeing Dr. Ayalew for nearly two decades. She is great and her staff is friendly and efficient.
- Sep. 20, 2023
Dr. Ayalew was great! Personable, professional, knowledgeable and very thorough.
- Sep. 18, 2023
Big fan of Dr. Ayalew. She is highly knowledgeable, takes the time to listen to my questions and con... cerns, and is always warm and friendly. Staff at the practice are also terrific.
- Jun. 26, 2023
I came to the office 15 minutes early and immediately taken care of. The staff was friendly and eff... icient. Once, I met with the doctor, she provided all relevant info and answered my questions. Very satisfied.
- Apr. 28, 2023
As a tourist from another country I stopped in this shop to have my daugther’s glasses fixed (she ... had lost a nose pad). They were super nice and fixed the issue on the spot. Thanks!
- Apr. 24, 2023
Dr. Ayalew and her entire staff are fantastic. I switched to her practice a few years ago when my p... revious doctor retired and have been incredibly happy ever since. She is thorough, thoughtful and very knowledgeable. I have an eye condition that requires regular monitoring and correction and she has helped me understand the challenges, solutions and what to expect as I age. Everyone in the office is knowledgeable, helpful and thorough too. In fact, I raved about how great my first experience was so much that my wife started going to her too. Now she won't go anywhere else either. Top notch!

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Comprehensive Eye Exams in Washington

Our optometry practice in Washington

Photograph of Saba  Ayalew
Hours
  • Monday 8:30 am - 5:00 pm
  • Tuesday 8:30 am - 5:00 pm
  • Wednesday 8:30 am - 5:00 pm
  • Thursday 8:30 am - 5:00 pm
  • Friday 8:30 am - 5:00 pm
  • Saturday Closed
  • Sunday Closed
Insurance Plans
  • Care First
  • Aetna
  • Davis Vision
  • VSP
  • EyeMed

child wearing glasses in class

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