Pupillary Pathways

Many people are wondering how the results of the general election will affect themselves and their family/friends with regards to many different topics. Have you wondered how optometry will be affected? AOA President, Dr. Andrea Thau, highlights some of the major optometry-related topics in the AOA 2016 General Election Report, what has been done so far, what the plan is for the future, and how you can help! 

The data breach involving optometrists and optometry students has still not been cracked. Although many have their own speculations as to which profession database was compromised, no one has stepped forward to take responsibility yet.  Were you a part of it?

However, the AOA has pressured the NBEO to change their requirements for registration to protect registrant's social security numbers. In the past the full 9-digit social security number was required and was kept in the NBEO database.  AOA's Privacy Appeal to NBEO Prompts Change at the Testing Organization.

Recently, the NBEO changed it's requirements and is now using the new OE tracker number system and only the last 4 digits of the SSN. Additionally, the full SSNs of existing registrants have been truncated to only the last 4 digits. Although the effects of the breach are still causing many issues, at least this will help protect new students who have not signed up with NBEO yet. 

We also have 10 steps you should take to prevent identify theft.

What is your current mode of optometry practice?

I am semi-retired, having sold both of my private practices in 2007. I still serve as a contract optometrist at the California Veterans Administration Home in Chula Vista, CA, working two days per month (perfect for my busy lifestyle). It has nearly 300 residents, ranging from independent to assisted to skilled nursing health care levels.

I am often amazed by the advances in medical technology. Robotic surgeon devices used to assist in surgical procedures have been around for many years. Now, this technology seems to be making it's way into the ocular surgery world.

A new surgical robot is claimed to be able to make the micro-scale movements required for the particularly delicate procedure of cataract surgery.  It is even designed to operate with greater accuracy than a human! Check out the article below which describes the new, incredible robotic device and how these robots remove cataracts.

Optometry student, take this optometry quiz!

Blood pressure is determined both by the amount of blood your heart pumps and the amount of resistance to blood flow in your arteries. The more blood your heart pumps and the narrower your arteries, the higher your blood pressure. You can have high blood pressure (hypertension) for years without any symptoms. Take our latest quiz. 

Here is the scenario:

A patient with a consistent blood pressure reading of 154/92 mmHg should be categorized as belonging to which stage of hypertension?

Be sure to check out our other quizzes!

How far is your Optometry School from your Hometown?

Be sure to also take out past polls!

OptoPrep is excited to be in Anaheim for the American Academy of Optometry Meeting! We would love to have you all come visit our booth in the exhibit hall and check out what OptoPrep has to offer! We’ve got many reasons for you to stop by, say hi, and see what OptoPrep can do for you! 

Learning and perfecting retinoscopy was one of the hardest things for me to master in optometry school. I struggled to figure out what reflex I was seeing, how to align the cylinder axis, what to do with small pupils and unclear media, and how to deal with the dreaded "scissors" reflex.

After I completed my proficiencies early in school, I thought I could forget about retinoscopy and just use an autorefractor for my patients in clinic. But I was wrong! Retinoscopy is tested during Part 3 of NBEO and aside from that, it is a technique that is actually very helpful in clinical practice; especially when examining children.

If you are also struggling with retinoscopy, the link below is a great way to take it back to the basics so that you can fully understand the concepts and foundation of retinoscopy, and then you'll be better at it when it comes to examining real eyes.

In this simulator, you can change your working distance, try different types of refractive errors, and even have the system come up with a random patient! What a great way to practice!