Direct Ophthalmoscopy

The principle of direct ophthalmoscopy is basically the same as for indirect ophthalmoscopy, with the only difference that the ophthalmologist uses an electric ophthalmoscope instead of a head ophthalmoscope. The electric ophthalmoscope is an ophthalmologic instrument that looks like a short rod with a mirror with a built-in magnifying glass attached to one end. The ophthalmologist now sits close to the patient for examination and holds the electric eye mirror between the patient’s eye to be examined and his own.

As if through a keyhole, the doctor can now look through the pupil into the patient’s eye and thus view and assess the fundus of the eye. This is possible because the light coming out of the small integrated lamp of the electric eye-mirror shines into the patient’s eye parallel to the doctor’s axis of vision, thus illuminating it brightly. Due to the ophthalmoscope itself, the image of the retina and other structures on the fundus of the eye is magnified 16 times and the doctor is able to notice and diagnose even the smallest possible pathological changes.

The disadvantage of direct ophthalmoscopy is the small size of the illuminated area of the fundus, which is magnified by several times more than in indirect ophthalmoscopy. Another difference, which is not really important for the result of the examination, is the fact that the image of the eye fundus that the doctor can see in direct ophthalmoscopy is upright (i.e. what is at the bottom of the patient’s eye is seen by the doctor at the bottom and what is at the top is also seen by the doctor at the top).In indirect ophthalmoscopy, on the other hand, the image of the fundus of the eye is upside down for the ophthalmologist (i.e. the image at the bottom is shown at the top for the doctor and vice versa). If it is necessary for a patient to have a very good overview of the eye fundus as well as a look at the details, the two examination techniques can be combined to offer the patient the best possible examination of the eye fundus.