Precise Eye Imaging with Zeiss Cirrus Optical Coherence Tomography
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an essential imaging tool for diagnosing many eye diseases, including glaucoma and retinal diseases such as macular degeneration, macular edema (a potential complication of cataract surgery), macular hole, retinal detachment, and optic nerve pits.
OCT uses scattered light to obtain precise, non-invasive images of the retina and optic nerve. The advent of OCT technology, by allowing clinicians to obtain precise images of the retina before and after treatment, helped revolutionize retinal treatment.
Original OCT systems used echo time delay of light reflected off the retina's various layers to gain retinal thickness data. This system, although good, has several disadvantages:
• Scans were slow, so motion artifacts caused by eye movements have to be smoothed over by a computer. • Macular mapping software breaks down • Relatively few data points are obtained and have to be interpolated • Subsequent exams are not registered, which may prevent continuity in diagnosis
A recent innovation in OCT technology is what is known as spectral domain (SD) OCT, which uses the wavelength of reflected light to compute data about the retina, and can obtain more data quickly, which leads to a number of important advantages, namely:
• Speed of acquisition eliminates motion artifacts • More complete data sets leading to less computerized interpolation • Better resolution allows detection of problems sooner allowing earlier intervention to prevent vision loss • 3D imaging to help visualization of problems • Rendered retinal image that helps detect dry macular degeneration early • Point to point registration for diagnostic continuity for patients
At Horizon Eye Care, we are proud to introduce Zeiss' Cirrus SD OCT system which will help us diagnose and treat glaucoma and numerous retinal diseases to protect the vision of our patients.
If you want to maintain your vision at its highest possible level for your entire life, work with a practice that keeps its place at the leading edge of diagnostic technology. Schedule a retinal diagnostic visit with Horizon Eye Care, where we share your vision and protect it as our own.
