KERATOMETER

Course overview

OPHTHALMOMETER OR KERATOMETER IS AN INSTRUMENT USED TO MEASURE THE CURVATURE OF THE ANTERIOR CORNEAL SURFACE AND ASSESS THE EXTENT AND AXIS OF ASTIGMATISM. KERATOMETRY IS THE MEASUREMENT OF THE CURVATURE OF THE ANTERIOR CORNEAL SURFACE, USUALLY ACROSS A FIXED CHORD LENGTH OF 2 TO 3 MM, WHICH FALLS WITHIN THE SPHERICAL OPTIC ZONE OF THE CORNEA. THE PRINCIPLE OF KERATOMETRY IS THAT THE ANTERIOR CORNEAL SURFACE BEHAVES AS A CONVEX MIRROR AND THE SIZE OF THE IMAGE CHANGE WITH THE CURVATURE. THERE ARE VARIOUS CLINICAL USES OF KERATOMETERS, SUCH AS CORNEAL ASTIGMATISM MEASUREMENT, CONTACT LENS FITTING, ASSESSMENT OF REFRACTIVE ERROR, IOL POWER CALCULATION, ETC. THE KERATOMETER READINGS MAY NOT ALWAYS BE PERFECT BECAUSE OF MISTAKES IN KERATOMETRY. THE ACTIVITY DEALS WITH KERATOMETERS, KERATOMETRY PRINCIPLE, TYPE OF KERATOMETERS, CLINICAL USE, ERRORS IN KERATOMETRY, AND CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF KERATOMETERS.