Positioning The Patient In The Slit Lamp

Positioning The Patient In The Slit Lamp

1. Procedure: Let the patient what you are going to do and why.

For Example: This is slit lamp microscope and Ill be examining the general health of the patient eye.

2. Head Position:
A. Inform the patient what you want them to do: chin in the chin rest and forehead up beside the headrest. For specialized and hygienic reasons always place a facial tissue on the slit lamps chin rest. You should have already cleaned the head and chin rest with an alcohol swab. This is always done between every patient.

This not only helps remain things more antiseptic, but also makes the slit lamp microscope smell clean and more professional.

B. Make sure the patient not only looks at ease but is comfortable. Their forehead tight against the headrest, chin firmly down on the chin rest and their outer corner aligned with the black marker on the slit lamp post. At this point it is a good idea to reach around and gently pull their head a little forward against the headrest.

3. Fixation Instructions: The patient must be given interesting instructions, where you want them to look. This might be the fascination light, part of the slit lamp or just past your ear.

4. Pre-Alignment And Focusing: Inform your patient to close their eyes and calm down while you get things aligned. Turn the slit lamp microscope on and focus the light source on the patients lid. The eyelid is only about 1 mm thick, so, when you instructed the patient to open their eyes you should almost be in focus on the tear film of the cornea.

Recommended Slit Lamp Examination Procedure

1. By means of a broad beam or better a 2 to 4 mm wide Parallelepiped Type Illumination, Magnification 10-16x, Illumination on low at 45 Degrees, Examine both the upper and lower lids and lashes. The patients eyes are open and the illumination source is moved at the midline of the lid.

2. Include the patient look to their left, light source to your left at approximately 45 degrees. The slit lamp microscope is set straight ahead. Examine and look at the temporal bulbar conjunctiva.

3. Have the patient look to their right, light starting place to your right at approximately 45 degrees. The microscope is set straight ahead. Scan and examine the nasal bulbar conjunctiva.

4. Have the patient look up, retract the lower lid, examining the lower bulbar, conjunctiva and inferior cornea. The light source should be moved across to the opposite side at the midline of the eye. The microscope is set directly ahead.

5. Have the patient look down, retract the upper lid, examine the upper bulbar conjunctiva and superior cornea. The light source should be moved across to the reverse side at the midline of the eye. The slit lamp microscope is set straight ahead.

6. Employ a Parallelepiped, 16X magnification, light source at 45 degrees and the microscope set straight ahead. Scan and examine the cornea. The light starting place should be stimulated across at the midline of the cornea.

7. Make use of a full length Optic Section, magnification 16X, light source at 60 degrees and the microscope set straight ahead. Evaluate and grade the temporal and nasal angles.

8. Apply a narrow Parallelepiped, 16X Magnification, light source at 45 degrees and the microscope set straight ahead. Examine the iris, crystalline lens and the anterior vitreous body. For all time, pull the slit lamp back, shut off the instrument, and lock it down at the end of any process. The above is only proposed as a schematic and students are encouraged to develop any order with which they feel comfortable.

It should be pointed out that all steps in the representation are relevant and should be part of the method