Advantages Of Using An 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 features of instruments used that determine which of the two procedures is adopted. For this reason, each type of examination uses its appropriate funduscope. The direct funduscope is tiny, almost the size of a hand-held torch, with potent lenses offering enlargement.

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.

The other advantage is that it provides better clarity for the opacities of the retina. This is due to the enhanced lighting that promotes visualization through the thick cloudy media. This type of ophthalmoscope has the ability to improve vision by separating paths of incident and reflected lights.

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.

The stereoscopic images that result from this equipment are of high quality and illuminated well. The equipment itself is very portable and the doctor or examiner only needs to hold the lens at proximity of length of arm close to the eye of the patient. The advantage this gives is that the patient will not be intimidated at all however apprehensive they may be.

The indirect type of instrument allows a wider working distance for the patient and doctor. This means that even lower powered lenses can provide larger views. It does not demand strict cooperation as is the case with its counterpart. It allows for viewing retina in far ends.

There are a few limitations though of using the indirect ophthalmoscope. It presents images in inverted vertical and horizontal formats that can be quite complicated and the level of magnification can also be lower. You will need to have a lot of patience so as to get a better view of image using this instrument. Nevertheless, the benefits of using this binocular type of ophthalmoscope outweigh these few limitations and so you can consider opting for it in your practice.




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