Some Benefits Derived From Using Indirect Ophthalmoscope

By Teri Farley


Ophthalmoscopy is examination of the inner part of the eye with the help of an instrument known as an ophthalmoscope. The procedure falls into two categories, direct as well as indirect ophthalmoscopy. In direct ophthalmoscopy, the eye's image is produced as an upright image that is up to fifteen times the original size. The latter inverts the image not beyond five times the sizes and the instrument used is an indirect ophthalmoscope.

There are different characteristics of the instrument that differentiates between the two types of the procedure. For this reason, each of the procedure has its special type of instrument. The direct instrument is small, about the size of a flashlight with powerful lenses for magnification.

This instrument is commonly used during run-of-the-mill examinations. The indirect funduscope has a headband that projects a light that works in conjunction with a small hand-held lens. The latter supports a broader view of the inner eye structure.

Utilizing an indirect funduscope has distinct advantages over its equivalent. It offers a broad perspective that renders a detailed view of the area around the eyes. This clear representation is achievable should the lens be covered by cataracts. The breadth of perspective increases by thirty degrees when facilitated by the potency of condensing lenses. By enabling a peripheral view of the retina, this approach is better, because it facilitates the retinopathy assessment process.

An additional feature is enhanced clarity of the retinal opacities, improved by clearer lighting that enables visualization through any dense cloudy obscurity. The augmented perception forms when channels of the incident and the reflected lights become separated, which does not happen in the case of the direct method. Oblique illumination is boosted by augmenting the pigmented lens size. In addition, the funduscope can be either monocular or binocular and is used during peripheral viewing of the retina.

When using a binocular instrument, the examiner gets access to stereoscopic view. This allows visualization of retinal detachment possible in three dimensions. The procedure also produces high quality stereoscopic images that are well illuminated. The complete equipment is portable. When used, the lens is held at arm's length close to the patient's eye. This sets the examiner away from the patient, which is not intimidating in the case of apprehensive patients.

The wider working area between patient and doctor allows for underpowered lenses that enable a larger perspective, whereas the direct method requires that the doctor and client co-operate. The binocular method minimizes such a requirement. Of value is that this process can be adopted to see the retina to its full extremity, thereby allowing for an holistic assessment of the eye by the examiner, at which point underlying or obscure problems may come to light.

Some disadvantages of going for the indirect funduscope include the complications of inverted vertical and horizontal images, along with lowered levels of magnification. It must be remembered that acquiring a perfect perspective can take a lot of time and patience. No technique is ever perfect, but some offer advantages over other comparative ones. Currently, the binocular indirect ophthalmoscope is preferred in the optometry market because of its many advantages.




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