Early detection & Early prevention

Many eye conditions that can harm your eyes, the earlier they are detected the less affect there is to the vision.

An OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography) scan in addition to a regular eye test is sure fire way of ensuring your eyes are examined and any sight threatening issues are diagnosed and seen before they become a problem.

What is an OCT?

An OCT is best understood as an ultrasound of the eye. An OCT machine is used widely across the world in all hospital eye departments. It allows the optometrist to examine beyond the retinal surface and gives a complete view of the many layers behind. Often many eye conditions can bubble away under the surface before a normal eye test would pick this up, often by this stage some damage to your vision may have already happened.

An OCT scan allows the optometrist to detect any eye conditions or anomalies up to five years in advance of a traditional eye exam.

Some conditions an OCT test can detect early sign of include:

• Wet AMD
• Macula Hole
• Age related Macula degeneration (ARMD/AMD)
• Posterior vitreous detachment (PVD)
• Glaucoma
• Diabetic retinopathy

The faster these conditions are identified, the faster they can be treated.

An OCT scan is stored on your record and we will often monitor any changes or potential abnormalities in your eyes, each time you have an eye exam. An OCT scan will be carried out to compare changes to previous results which can help us identify any changes which may point towards a potential eye condition.

How does an OCT work?

An OCT scan works very similar to an ultrasound, however using light waves instead of sound waves. Using rays of light, over 1000 real time images of your eye are taken to create a layered image and scan of your retina. This will allow your optometrist to examine your retina in greater detail than ever before and detect any small indications of eye disease.

Examples of the scans generated are below:

Why have an OCT exam?

• Early diagnosis – An OCT exam is the gold standard in eye examinations and early detection ultimately means early prevention
• Instant results – an Oct scan takes seconds to carry out, giving immediate results during your eye exams including a 3D image of the eyes and retina
• Monitoring – All scans are stored and used in comparison to earlier scans for monitoring of eye conditions
• Painless – An OCT scan is totally painless and completely non-invasive therefore no drops are needed