The ophthalmoscope needs to used in
a darkened room at every exam. It is the "stethoscope"
for the eyes. Every time a stethoscope is used to listen to
your child's heart, an ophthalmoscope should be used to look
in your child's eyes.
The doctor shines the light into the eyes for a red reflex
of the retina. If they do not get a strong red reflex, this
could indicate a problem and the child should be referred
to an eye doctor immediately for further evaluation.
If the lights are not turned out, you will not get a true
red reflex and the chances of seeing an eye disease are diminished
NOTE: This is how we all get to the eye doctor in time to
save our vision. The ophthalmoscope needs to be used at all
exams whether we are one day old or one hundred years old.
At anytime in our lives we can start to develop an eye disease;
this is how we detect it in time to hopefully save our vision.
All health care professionals have ophthalmoscopes and they
need to be used at every exam in a darkened room for detection
and referral. Joey's pediatrician never used an ophthalmoscope.
If he would have taken a moment and looked at his 15 or 18
month well baby exam, Joey would have his eye, his vision
and his life!
I did not know to ask…make sure this is happening for your
Sadly, we still have health care professionals not using
their ophthalmoscopes; and many who remember to get them out
do not turn out the lights…they are not using them correctly.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR INFANTS!!
An infant's pupil is too small in diameter for the ophthalmoscope
to detect. Therefore we need to do a simple, yet vital eye
dilation exam. We are recommending this happen at birth,
the six to eight week well-baby exam and one more at the six
to eight month well-baby exam. These three eye dilation exams
in the first half year of life will help to ensure healthy
vision and life for our newborns and infants.
The nurse drops the eye dilation drop in the infants eyes
after the baby is weighed. At the end of the well-baby exam
when the eyes are dilated, the doctor turns out the lights
and does the required exam. Therefore, it is no extra time
to the pediatrician. It only takes ten seconds of time and