Over the past decade Optos has expanded the capability of its core ultra-widefield fundus imaging technology, and with that has come a widening number of clinical applications.
Ultra-widefield (UWF™) imaging technology – enabling the capture of a 200-degree view of the retina without dilation – gives ocular health practitioners imagery and diagnostic information that can’t be provided by conventional imaging methods. Starting with color (red and green) optomap imaging, Optos has systematically extended its UWF-based technology into a multi-modal platform that supports fundus autofluorescence (optomap af), fluorescein angiography (optomap fa) and indocyanine green angiography (optomap icg).
Optos has also been incorporating the latest developments in image processing, providing users with important diagnostic and treatment management tools. In its latest software release, Optos has incorporated an advanced, proven stereographic projection algorithm that corrects for peripheral image variations that occur when a spherical image is flattened.
Clinical Applications
While the most common use of UWF technology may be in the diagnosis and treatment of diabetic retinopathy (DR), optomap imaging is also being used for characterizing pediatric retinal disease; age-related macular degeneration (AMD); retinal breaks and tears; uveitis, ocular oncology; central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR); retinal vein occlusion (RVO); and a growing list of other …
Why did Prevent Blindness, a national organization dedicated to advocacy for healthy vision, choose August as Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month? The three-word answer — back to school. Common eye conditions such as astigmatism, hyperopia (farsightedness), and myopia (nearsightedness), can compromise a child’s ability to read, comprehend classroom materials, and participate in games and sports. Over time, this can result in poor performance in school and social difficulties. What are the numbers? Studies report that nine percent of children ages 5 to 17 are affected by myopia; 13 percent are affected with hyperopia; and more than 15 percent with astigmatism. With statistics like these, August is an ideal time to schedule annual eye exams as part of every back-to-school checklist.
But annual eye exams aren’t just for the back-to-school crowd. Children under the age of six can also have vision difficulties. This is of particular concern, as undiagnosed vision difficulties in younger children can lead to developmental delays, affecting visual-motor and even cognitive functions. Along with the astigmatism, myopia and hyperopia, children 6 and under are also at risk for amblyopia, or “lazy eye.” Affecting 2 percent of children aged 6 to 72 months, if untreated, amblyopia can lead to permanent …
As medical communities around the globe work to make the transition from treating sickness to preventing it, it’s still not the norm for healthy, asymptotic individuals to receive routine screening exams.
Ocular health is no exception. How often do adults with 20/20 vision and no eye-related symptoms schedule themselves for an optometric exam? That’s especially of concern considering that a number of ocular diseases such as, diabetic retinopathy (DR)1, open angle glaucoma2, age-related macular degeneration (AMD)3, and degenerative retinoschisis4, may not present any symptoms during their initial phases. Early detection of these diseases can have a significant impact on courses of treatment and the probability of positive outcomes.
One illustration of how UWF™ (ultra-widefield) imaging can improve the early detection of eye disease are the results of what amounts to an inadvertent experiment in the screening of healthy individuals. Training for Optos users and new Optos technical employees involves hands-on familiarization and instruction on UWF imaging systems. Part of that involves trainees taking color optomap images of themselves. These training exercises sometimes yield unexpected results:
— Chad, who joined Optos in 2013, is a single parent and at the time of his hire had no history of eye problems. Prior to coming to Optos his full schedule and absence …