# need help on the medical



## Guzman (24 Oct 2002)

hi everyone,im new here and i have a few questions for the vets or anyone that could help me.
 my concern is on the eye exame.can anyone tell me what the exact requirment is for the infantry. 

my eye sight is -2.25 and ive already been turned down by the toronto police force b/c of it.ive asked others about this and they told me i'd be fine with my current vison.i called the recruiting office just to make sure and i spoke to a medic who didnt tell me anything useful.he told me that they would have to test my sight and that it has more to do with then just my prescription.being the determined person i am    i called back and asked if theres anything i could ask my own optometrist so that i could make sure befor i apply,wait and end up waisting my time.so he said..."nope".

so yea,i cant seem to get a clear anwser to this,if anyone can help me out i would really appreciate it.thnx in advance for any info

*EDIT: FOR CURRENT VISION INFORMATION, VISIT HERE: http://forums.army.ca/forums/threads/31590.0.html
EDIT: I HAVE LOCKED THIS THREAD, AS SOME OF THE INFORMATION PRE-DATED THE JUNE 2004 CHANGES TO THE 
EDIT: VISION STANDARDS.  OM.

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## Jug (24 Oct 2002)

Ya...they do get a bit cryptic at times don‘t they. For infantry, I would think that they would require 20/20, but don‘t quote me on that.

I can sympathize. I‘m taking some medication right now that had me a bit worried but it will probably turn our ok for me...so don‘t sweat it too much.

One thing you could look into is laser-eye surgery. I‘ve done this myself. Went from 20/100 to 20/15.

Another thing you should probably think about is a back-up plan in case the infantry does consider this a restriction.

Good luck.


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## Guzman (25 Oct 2002)

no,im sure it isnt 20/20...that would be insane.
as for looking for anonther trade..dude,ive wanted this since i was 8,now 19...no way in **** .

ive thought about sugery but its dangerous and i dont have the money.


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## Korus (25 Oct 2002)

You need what‘s known as "V3" category vision to get into combat arms. With -2.25, you shouldn‘t have any trouble.

I know -6 will place you in V4, but I don‘t know the boundaries...


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## bossi (25 Oct 2002)

The Army also will test you for colour vision (CB), since colour blindness could be a liability on the battlefield.

Ditto for uncorrected vision, since there‘s no "time out" if you lose your contact lens or break your glasses.

I‘m surprised nobody will fess up as to the definitions of V1, V2, V3 - after all, it‘s not as if a recruit could study for or cheat on an eye exam ...

However, I guess the cult of "tight-lipped" pervades.

Lastly, eye surgery - at first, there was aa complete "ban" on eye surgery, due largely to the lack of empirical data (i.e. it wa sso new, there was no proven track record).  I think it‘s been relaxed slightly, and there‘s one-year waiting period after surgery before people can apply or have thier vision re-tested by the CF (dont‘ quote me as a reliable source, I‘m just going by what I‘ve overheard).

I‘ve also heard there can be some side-effects from eye surgery, such as night vision being affected.  Plus, something that youngsters don‘t always think about, as you get older your eye changes (ever noticed how many people need reading glasses as they get older?)  Thus, it‘s entirely possible you might experience complications much later in life.

The best advice for you, or anybody who‘s contemplayting eye surgery, would be to read up on it yourself, and ask a medical professional for advice.  I know this has been discussed on the War Dieary before, and there were some excellent references cited - you might want to try the "search" function.

Good luck with whatever you decide - after all, it‘s your life - we just hope nobody makes a decision they‘ll regret for therest of theirs ...


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## Jug (25 Oct 2002)

I stand corrected then. A V3 vision status for CF...guess you have to find out what that standard means and then see if you fit.

I understand that you‘ve wanted infantry since 9, and thats great....but in my experience its always good to have a backup plan. Just a suggestion.

Good luck.


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## Ralph (25 Oct 2002)

Here‘s a chart that explains the breakdown:
 http://www.dnd.ca/health/policies/med_standards/pdf/Engraph/cfp154_annexAappen_e.pdf 
6/6 is the same as 20/20. I don‘t think you‘ll have any problems. I was V3 a decade ago in the Reserves, but kept sliding until I was around 20/1200 in the left eye (-6.5) and decided to get the laser surgery before starting the application process this time around. I had it done in June and my medical cleared last week - I think that one-year thing is for those who are already in...maybe they have to hold off going overseas? 
Good luck,
Ralph.


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## Sharpey (25 Oct 2002)

Colour blindness didn‘t affect my entry into the Land Forces. I wouldn‘t be concerned about that.


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## combat_medic (25 Oct 2002)

I have a friend with a -4.25 correction in each eye, and it didn‘t prevent him from becoming an infantryman. He recently (a week ago) got laser eye surgery, and is already back parading with the unit. He‘s in the V3 category, which means he JUST made it into the combat arms. Also, for people asking about colour blindness, you‘re restricted from certain trades (engineer, artillery) if you‘re colour blind, but that‘s about it.

Also, the waiting period for the laser eye surgery depends on the kind of surgery you get (LASIK, PRK, RK etc.). You can‘t be a pilot if you‘ve had laser correction, and the results with night vision have improved significantly in the past few years, especially with the LASIK procedure, which is becoming more popular. Trust me, as a medic, medics can be very cryptic and hard to understand (this makes medic courses interesting, to say the least).  Hope this helps you out.


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