Advantages Of Using An Indirect Ophthalmoscope

By Teri Farley


Ophthalmoscopy, also known as funduscopy or fundoscopy, entails examination of the fundus of the eye using an ophthalmoscope or funduscope. The process falls into two classes, direct and indirect ophthalmoscopy. In the former, the image of the organ is produced as a vertical image that is magnified about fifteen times the actual size. By using indirect ophthalmoscope the process entails inverting the image about two to five times the actual size.

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.

There are many advantages of using this indirect gadget. The first is that it provides a better view of the fundus of the eye and thus can even be seen with the lens covered with cataracts. It has condensing lenses that improves the field of view to up to 30 degrees. This makes it even better to view the retina in a peripheral way. Because of the improved way of view, you can be sure of best retinopathy assessment process using this gadget.

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 adopting a binocular ophthalmoscope, the examiner gets access to stereoscopic view. This allows determination of retinal detachment, should it be present, through three dimensions, and produces advanced stereoscopic images that are brightly lit. The full assembly is portable. Whilst being used, the lens is held away from the body of the practitioner and close to the patient's face. This prevents the examiner from invading the patient's personal space, thereby creating a comfort zone for 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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