2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY - Examining Boards and Professional Colleges (§§ 1 — 6033) › Chapter 27 - Board of Examiners of Optometrists (§§ 521-529 — 544y) › § 544 - General provisions—Definitions

For the purposes of §§ 544—544y of this title, the following terms shall have the definitions given below:
(a) Optometry. — Is defined as an independent primary health care profession devoted to the examination of the eyes, and the refraction of the visual system, the human eye and its adnexa, through the use of any objective or subjective method, in order to discover, treat and manage the visual, muscular or accommodative defects or disorders of the eye, as well as diagnose the various visual defects, abnormal conditions of the human eye and its adnexa, either by measuring its range with regard to the normal degree of vision, and subnormal vision, as well as by prescribing focused or unfocused lenses, or ophthalmic eyeglasses, contact lenses, prisms, muscular exercises, orthoptics, visual therapy, phototherapy, chromotherapy, as well as any legitimate principle, substance, method or apparatus for the attention, treatment or correction of said deficiencies and the preparation and dispensing of corrective or prosthetic devices for the correction of visual defects and disorders.
(b) Practice of optometry. — Any single or any combination of the following practices of optometry:
(1) The examination of the human visual system, the eye and its adnexa without the use of medication or surgery, by means of subjective or objective means, to determine the accommodative or refractive state of the human eye and its visual acuity; discover the presence of abnormal defects and conditions that may be corrected through the use of lenses, prisms or eye exercises and to adapt the human eye to special occupational conditions.
(2) The measurement, examination, diagnosis, prevention, improvement, management or treatment of the functions and visual defects, refractive anomalies, or muscular functions, without the use of medication or surgery.
(3) The prescription, preparation, delivery, adjustment or adaptation of ophthalmic items, merchandise, apparatus, or artifacts; focused or unfocused lenses, tinted or clear lenses, or filters, prisms, contact lenses, or eyeglasses, without the use of medication or surgery, to correct abnormal defects or conditions of the human visual system, the eyes or their adnexa.
(4) The administration or prescription of orthoptic therapy, visual therapy, phototherapy, chromotherapy, visual rehabilitation, subnormal vision, ocular-motor visual therapy, perceptual visual therapy or any other objective or subjective method, without the use of medication or surgery, for the purpose of preventing, improving, managing and treating or relieving visual functions or defects, or muscular functions or anomalies.
(c) Certified practice of optometry. — Is constituted by any single or any combination of the following practices:
(1) The examination of the human visual system, the eye and its adnexa, by means of subjective or objective mechanisms to determine the accommodative or refractive stages of the human eye and its visual acuity; discover the presence of defects and abnormal conditions that may be corrected through the use of lenses, prisms and eye exercises, and to adapt the human eye to special occupational conditions.
(2) The measurement, examination, diagnosis, prevention and improvement of visual functions and defects anomalies and muscular functions.
(3) The prescription, preparation, delivery, adjustment or adaptation of articles, merchandise, ophthalmic apparatus or artifacts, focused and unfocused lenses, tinted or non-tinted lenses with or without filters, prisms, contact lenses or eyeglasses to correct defects or abnormal conditions of the human visual system and its adnexa.
(4) The administration or prescription of orthoptic therapy, visual therapy, phototherapy, chromotherapy, visual rehabilitation, subnormal vision, ocular-motor visual therapy, perceptual visual therapy, and any other objective or subjective method for the purpose of preventing, improving, managing and treating visual functions or defects or muscular functions or anomalies.
(5) The topical use of cycloplegic agents for refractive purposes in order to determine any refractive anomalies or deficiencies.
(d) Optometrist. — An independent primary health care professional, dedicated to the practice of optometry, who holds a title of Doctor of Optometry, or the initials O.D. by virtue of his or her academic training, which qualifies him/her as such.
(e) Certified optometrist. — An optometrist who holds a certificate issued by the Board to use cycloplegic agents and topical anesthetics to determine the refractive condition of the eye.
(f) Adnexa. — Structures related to the visual system, including, but not limited to the eye, lid, lashes, tear ducts, nervous system, orbit and associated muscles, vessels and nerves.
(g) Board. — Refers to the Puerto Rico Optometrists Examining Board.
(h) License. — A document duly issued by the Board to certify that the person in whose name it has been issued is a professional authorized to practice optometry in Puerto Rico, according to the requirements established in §§ 544—544y of this title.
(i) Certificate. — A document duly issued by the Board in evidence that the person in whose name it has been issued is a certified professional authorized to practice certified optometry in Puerto Rico, as defined in §§ 544—544y of this title.
(j) Recertification. — Means the procedure provided for health professionals in §§ 3001 et seq. of Title 24, as amended by Act No. 29 of August 7, 1990.
(k) Pharmacological agents. —
(1) For refractive purposes. — Anesthetics and cycloplegic agents, whose topical use has been authorized by the Board for the specific purpose of determining the refractive condition of the eye.
(l) Human visual system. — Refers to the system or group of anatomical structures of the eye and its adnexa, that intervene in the visual process.
(m) College. — Puerto Rico College of Optometrists-created by virtue of §§ 545 et seq. of this title.
History —Aug. 15, 1999, No. 246, § 1.02.