If you noticed a sudden change in your vision or in the exterior appearance of your eye, you probably wouldn’t hesitate to schedule an immediate evaluation and any necessary treatment. But some of the most important changes in the eye can occur deep in the eye’s interior, including the retina and the blood vessels that nourish this essential structure.

Traditional methods for examining these issues in detail have involved lengthy, awkward techniques that may actually deter some patients from going through with the evaluations they need. Foster Vision is proud to offer an advanced digital alternative for examining retinal and vascular health in the eye: Optovue OCT and OCTA imaging.

Retinal and Vascular Evaluation in a Comprehensive Eye Exam

The retina of the eye plays a key role in the collection of visual signals, which are then transferred via the optic nerve to the vision center of the brain to create what we call vision. This delicate tissue can be vulnerable to a variety of problems. An unnaturally thin retinal tissue may be more prone to the development of retinal tears, holes, and detachments that can lead to permanent vision loss. Diseases such as diabetic retinopathy and “wet” (neovascular) macular degeneration can cause blood damage to the blood vessels that serve the retina. Abnormally fragile blood vessels may then grow out of control and leak blood into the eye.

These issues need to be detected as early as possible so we can prescribe the proper treatments to get them under control. In addition to comprehensive eye exams that let us view the eye’s interior through dilated pupils, a technique known as angiogram has traditionally been used to reveal retinal blood vessel problems in detail. Unfortunately, this technique has some downsides and limitations. The injection of dyes into your body (to make the eye’s blood vessels show up more clearly) can cause allergic reactions and/or an upset stomach, and the entire process can easily take half an hour. The dyes can even be passed on in breast milk, a concern for pregnant or nursing women.

The Optovue Advantage

The Opovue digital imaging technologies offered at Foster Vision make old-fashioned angiograms — and their potential risks and inconveniences — a thing of the past. Our optometrists can use this non-invasive technique to take sharp, clear, extraordinarily detailed images of your internal eye structures without injecting any dyes into your body or dilating your pupils beforehand. The information we can get this type of eye exam includes:

  • OCT retinal imaging – Optovue’s digital OCT capabilities deliver three-dimensional pictures of the inside of the eye, from the front to the back, including the tissues of the retina. It includes measurements of your retinal thickness.
  • OCTA angiography – Optovue’s AngioVue technology can take digital angiograms that reveal the eye’s blood vessels in greater detail than other methods can achieve. The results are ready for viewing within seconds.

Schedule a State-of-the-Art Eye Exam at Our Portland Optometry Clinic

Thanks to our advanced methods, Foster Vision can look after your eyes more thoroughly, comfortably, and easily than you ever thought possible. Experience the Foster Vision advantage for yourself — call (503) 546-4460 for an eye exam at our Portland optometry clinic.