Eye Health

Vision & Eye Health

The eyes are the windows to the soul according to the poet, but your eyes are a window into your health.

Based on years of research and observation, eye doctors now have an understanding of how systemic disease can be detected during an eye exam.

The eye is the only organ in the body where a doctor can directly see blood vessels. The health of these vessels may indicate the condition of blood vessels throughout the body, and thus is helpful in identifying heart disease and diabetes. Inflammation of the iris may indicate the presence of an autoimmune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus. Protruding eyes might point to the presence of Grave’s disease; dry eyes may indicate thyroid disorders; difficulty with eye movement, optic nerve inflammation, blind spots or variable vision may suggest multiple sclerosis.

If the doctors at My Family Vision Clinic detect any systemic abnormalities, they will work with your family physician or internist to determine if further treatment is required.

Diagnostic Equipment

A detailed case history of a patient’s vision problem is most helpful in determining the cause of the problem. That is why we ask you so many questions on the initial history questionnaire when you come to our office. In addition, modern technology has provided us with many excellent tools to solve problems. We strive to stay current and to have state of the art diagnostic equipment.

The AutoKeratometer/Refractor measures the topography (corneal shape) of the cornea. It is very useful in contact lens fitting and in evaluating eyes for LASIK, both pre and post-op. This instrument is also helpful in contact lens fitting and determining if there are irregularities with your cornea.

The OPTOS Retinal Imager is our newest diagnostic instrument. As of November 2003, our office was the 3rd in the state of Nebraska to have an OPTOS Retinal Imager.

This fantastic instrument enables us to obtain a retinal image of the entire retina in 1/4 of a second. The advantage of the Optomap image is that we can see the entire retina without dilating the pupil. This is much more patient friendly in that the blurry vision after dilation is eliminated. We also have a permanent record of the retinal image to compare to future images. This is invaluable in monitoring eye health.

The Optomap images are taken by technicians and analyzed by the doctor who will take the time to go over the results with you.

More information on this instrument can be found on the OPTOS website.

Dicon 4000

The Dicon 4000 is a computerized method to plot a person’s visual field. The patient responds to various tiny flashes of light of varying intensity and the area of the visual field is plotted. This tests the integrity of the optic nerve and possible changes due to glaucoma, tumors, and retinal problems.

The Biomicroscope is commonly referred to as a slit lamp. This enables the front portion of your eye to be seen in different amounts of magnification. This is invaluable in doing corneal health evaluations, removing foreign bodies, observing contact lenses on the eye and follow up on eye infections. It can also be used to view internal structures of the eye with a dilated pupil.

The Panoptic Ophthalmoscope is a hand held device used to view the internal structure of the eye.

The Phoropter is the instrument that the doctors use to determine refractive error. It contains banks of lenses that the doctor changes according to your responses during the vision test. In this way, the doctor can determine the corrective lenses needed for your distance and near vision.

Tonometer

The Tonometer is used to measure IOP (Intra Ocular Pressure). All eyes have pressure – this gives the eyeball rigidity and it should remain in the normal range. If pressure is elevated it may indicate glaucoma.

My Family Vision Clinic utilizes an applanation type instrument which has proven to be the most accurate method of measurement. This instrument will not blow air into your eyes.

The Indirect Ophthalmascope requires the pupil to be dilated but affords a wider stereoscopic view of the interior of the eye. The doctor uses a combination of a head mounted light source and a hand held condensing lens to view the interior of the eye.

At My Family Vision Clinic we have a new instrument, OPTOS Retinal Imager, that can eliminate the need for most dilations.

Trial frame and lenses are used to actually simulate your vision through your new prescription. This enables the doctor to determine the lens power that gives you the optimum vision possible.