Usually when your patients think of their annual eye exam, receiving a potentially life-threatening diagnosis probably isn’t what they have in mind. However, as one patient can attest, the eye exam she received in 2013 saved her life.

Nakivia came to Dr. Andrew Kraft’s office in Enid, Oklahoma, for an exam about five years ago and was given information about optomap® during her appointment. Although it wasn’t covered by her insurance plan, Nakivia opted to have an optomap® so Dr. Kraft could create a baseline for comparison in future appointments. In May 2013, Nakivia received another optomap® exam to check for changes in her eye pathology.

The images captured during Nakivia’s exam in 2013 were compared with past images and revealed that her optic nerve was bending, as well as blood vessels that were hemorrhaging. She was referred to Dr. Barry Pollard, who completed a specialized MRI within four hours of Nakivia’s eye exam. The MRI revealed that Nakivia had a brain tumor, which was the cause of the bending in her optic nerve and hemorrhaging blood vessels. Doctors performed surgery and now Nakivia is alive and well and has experienced more than 50 percent improvement in her vision without contacts or glasses!

Nakivia’s doctors said that without the clues provided in her optomap® images and immediate actions taken as a result, she likely would have suffered a stroke or seizure just a few months later.

Nakivia’s story is just one of many in which a seemingly simple optomap® exam led to a life-saving diagnosis. Visit our website to read additional case studies.

And if you’re interested in adding Optos’ innovative optomap® technology to your practice, contact us today. Our representatives are ready to answer your questions and share more about our retinal imaging products and diagnostic instruments.