Effective Diagnosis and Management

 

One of our newest diagnostic instruments is our Canon Retinal Camera.  It allows us to take a photo of the inside surface of the back of the eye.  The information we obtain from these photos is extremely valuable in helping us to first establish a baseline of your ocular health, and then to continue to monitor and perfectly document the health of your eyes - the retina (macular degeneration), the blood vessels (high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol), and the optic nerve (glaucoma) - at each yearly exam.

The newest and most unique instrument we have is the Sonogage PlusŪ pachometer.  It measures the thickness of the cornea (front surface of the eye) and is used for: differential diagnosis of certain types of glaucoma, monitoring the health of the corneas of contact lens patients,  as well as for corneal reshaping therapies.  In fact, this instrument is the only one in the world sensitive enough to measure the thickness of the corneal epithelium (the front surface  layer of the cornea) which is the tissue that is molded in corneal reshaping.  With corneal reshaping, you can see clearly without contact lenses or glasses and, most importantly, without surgical risk!  We are the first office in Southern California to acquire this advanced state-of-the-art instrument to more accurately predict and more safely monitor corneal reshaping.


The picture above is an actual retinal photo of one of our staff members.

We have also recently installed a brand new Canon RK-5 Auto Refractor.  This instrument takes a measurement of your prescription by calibrating the optical properties in your eye with infrared light. 

 

Basically, it is a tool that gives us a starting point for your prescription and helps us to more accurately determine your final glasses and/or contact lens prescription.



The Auto Refractor takes its measurement as you focus on the above target (the red roof of the small house in the middle of the meadow).

The Keratron Corneal Topographer is an instrument we use on every contact lens patient, every patient on which we are performing corneal reshaping,  as well as any patient with abnormalities of the front surface of the eye.

If we determine that you do have any corneal irregularities (i.e. due to scarring from previous injury or surgery, keratoconnus,  etc.) we can use CadCam software with our topographer to map those imperfections and manufacture a custom rigid gas permeable lens.  This custom lens will have a 'glove-like' fit and will provide you with your best possible vision.  Below is an image capture from this software.

  The topographer uses tens of thousands of light points to give us a color-coded picture of the front surface of your eye, similar to a topographical map of a landscape.
  

From this information, we can determine if you have any irregularities on your cornea or if you have any astigmatism that could affect the fit of your contact lenses.  It can also give us a possible reason of unexplained poor vision, that cannot be corrected with glasses or regular contact lenses.
The Humphrey Visual Field Analyzer is another brand new instrument that allows us to measure the sensitivity of your retina.  This is a screening test we perform on every patient.  The results can tell us if you've lost any vision, even if the loss is slight enough that you haven't noticed yet.  This gradual loss of vision can occur with several conditions, including glaucoma, diabetes, neurological problems, and cataracts (and many others).  

If you've never been diagnosed with any of these health conditions, and you show a visual field loss on our screening test, we may be the first health care professionals to determine that there is a problem that needs to be addressed.  And, as with every condition affecting your health, the sooner management is started, the better your prognosis.