Eye care is a critical part of your health. Expert eye doctors recommend regular comprehensive eye exams, especially for people with existing eye issues. They recommend that once you turn 40, you should make eye exams regular, even if you do not have any eye issues. The reason? After 40, your eyes are predisposed to develop problems.

The eyes are often said to be the windows to the soul; to eye doctors, they are windows to your health. Many conditions in your body tend to present symptoms first in your eyes before any other part of your body. Most of these are serious conditions that may be life-threatening. You may need an OCT scan to get a clear picture of what is going on in your eyes. Read on to learn more.

What Is an OCT Scan?

An OCT scan or an optical coherence tomography scan is a test that provides thorough and detailed images of our eyes. It is a noninvasive test that delivers cross-sectional images of the retina and the rest of the eye. All the images are in 3D and are color coded for easy interpretation.

The OCT scan gives the eye doctor a clear idea of what is going on in your eyes. It can look deeper, even into your retina, by utilizing laser technology. The laser is safe for sensitive eye structures because it does not produce radiation. The light from the laser allows the device to collect high-resolution images of the retina and its underlying structures. It also gives images of the optical nerve, which serves the eye.

What Is It Used For?

The OCT scan is a diagnostic device that gives an in-depth look at your eye health. It was invented to allow eye doctors to identify any issues that may develop in your eye. Most of the issues it was invented for usually develop without showing symptoms. Hence, an OCT scan is critical in identifying severe eye conditions while still developing.

Because of the information it can gather, eye doctors use an OCT scan to diagnose all health issues affecting the eyes. After turning 40, you are predisposed to hypertension, glaucoma, and diabetes. These only show symptoms when they are fully advanced. However, they manifest symptoms within the eye in much earlier stages.

When Is an OCT Performed?

If an eye doctor runs a comprehensive eye exam and suspects underlying issues, they are most likely to recommend an OCT scan. Some of the common conditions they may be looking for are:
 

• Glaucoma

Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness. It is a dangerous eye condition that never presents any symptoms until it is in the advanced stages. It usually leads to blindness when it is untreated. But with treatment, it is easily manageable.
 

• Age-related Macular Degeneration

AMD is another leading cause of blindness for people over 50 years old. Like glaucoma, AMD rarely presents symptoms until it is quite advanced. An OCT scan will identify it while it is developing.
 

• Diabetes-related Retinopathy

Diabetes harms your eye health because it damages the blood vessels that supply flood and oxygen. When untreated, it can lead to retinal detachment, leading to blindness.

Other Conditions an OCT Scan Can Detect
 

• Cystoid macular edema.
   

• Macular pucker.
   

• Macular hole.
   

• Cone and cone-rod dystrophies.
   

• Tumors in your retina and choroid.

For more on why you should request an OCT scan with your eye doctor, visit Highline Eye Care & Optical at our office in Flagstaff, Arizona. Call (928) 240-9214 to book an appointment today.