4D Eye Health Check
What is the 4D Eye Health Check?
Why Should I have a 4D Eye Health Check?
If your vision seems fine it does not necessarily mean that your eyes are healthy, most people won’t become aware of a problem until their vision is significantly affected, by which stage the results can be irreversible. Everyone would benefit from a 4D Eye Health Check although it is especially sensible for those over 40, when eye disease is more common, and for anyone with eye health issues in the family.
If you do have healthy eyes, this is still a great time to have a scan as it provides us with a detailed picture of how your eyes look at their best, making any changes that may occur more noticeable.
Testimonials
The advanced equipment alongside the ability of Steph's diagnostic skills had diagnosed glaucoma a whole year before the doctors at the hospital had. How amazing! They must be so proud of all they have achieved. I will be forever grateful to everyone at Bowen Opticians for their expertise and knowledge of eye health, and willingness to constantly invest in the latest diagnostic methods available.
I have cataracts which makes it difficult to see the back of my eyes and was amazed to find that Bowen opticians have a superb scanner which identified early dry macula degeneration. I was followed up regularly and one visit showed signs of wet macula degeneration and I was referred urgently to the Eye Hospital in Bristol and I am now having treatment for this condition. Without the scan it could have been some time before this was identified and therefore the chance of effective treatment reduced considerably. My husband also had a small hole in his retina detected and whilst this has not changed he will be followed up on a regular basis.
We cannot praise Bowen opticians highly enough.
It's quick, simple, non-invasive and I am absolutely amazed at the detail of the back of my eye that it can "photograph". It even has a graph where the results can be compared over time. I'm ok at present, I'm pleased to say - but it gives me great reassurance that, even if I don’t notice any deterioration between scans, the scanner WILL pick it up.
Thank you Bowens for investing for our healthcare!
FAQs
No. The Spectralis really is the most superior of its kind. But don’t just take our word for it; the same model of OCT scanner used in our practice is also used by NASA to assess the eyes of astronauts whilst in space. It’s their machine of choice for the same two reasons it is ours:
Reason 1. Its unbeatable Image Quality It has a higher image quality than other OCT scanners (but that doesn’t mean the pictures just look prettier) it is accurate to 1 micron – that’s one thousandth of a millimetre! Other models of OCT are only accurate to 9 microns. That may still seem small, but that actually means you can’t differentiate all of the layers of tissue and are forced to combine up to 3 layers of tissue into one. If the Heidelberg Spectralis detects a problem, we will know its exact location.
Reason 2. It’s Unique Laser Tracking Technology This allows us to monitor the health of your eyes accurately over time. The laser tracker means that after the first scan is performed, the machine will detect the exact same location time and time again. A little bit like a homing missile, it recognizes the right part and adjusts accordingly. Without this tracking technology, you will undoubtedly catch a different part in the eye because it would be next to impossible to recreate the same head position accurate to one thousandth of a millimetre. This means we will be confident about any ways the eye is changing. We’ll know if a problem area was getting better or worse, and any uncertainty that it looks different just because we captured a slightly different location will be eliminated.
Yes! Taking a photo of the back of the eye is commonplace in eye examinations today. Some opticians include it in the price of a sight test or you might have paid a small fee to have it done. If you’re diabetic, you’ll have these photographs taken on a regular basis, most likely at your GP surgery. Whilst this is a useful diagnostic tool, it does not show you any more of the eye than in your standard eye test. It is simply a photograph of what the optometrist can already see. OCT however, shows us all the layers of tissue that sit behind what you can see in a photograph.
The scan is usually very quick and is performed in about 1-2 minutes per eye. We recommend you allow around 20 minutes for the scan though, as this will give us time to discuss the results.
No, there’s no discomfort at all. There is no contact with the eye, there aren’t any bright flashes or puffs of air, and you don’t need to have any drops put in your eyes. You can also blink normally whilst having the scan. It simply involves you sitting still and focussing on a small blue cross.
The results are instant and we usually discuss them with you during your visit, although there might be the odd occasion where we need to get back to you.
Yes. In fact, if you have a cataract it’s all the more reason to have OCT. Cataracts form when the lens inside the eye loses transparency or becomes ‘cloudy’. This means it’s more difficult to get a good view of the back of the eye during your sight test. In OCT however, the safe light beam does not get obstructed by the cataract, so we can see the back of the eye clearly.
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