An ophthalmoscope is the basic tool used by an optometrist to examine the interior of the human eye. It helps the doctor to look through the pupil inside the eye and uses a beam of light to illuminate tissues which are otherwise invisible.
It was invented by a German physicist and physician Hermann von Helmholtz in 1851. Helmholtz called his invention ‘augenspiegel’ which means eye mirror. Before the ophthalmoscope, the only instrument available to examine the eye was the magnifying glass. However, the pupil of the eye appeared black and the doctor was unable to see the back of the eye.
The ophthalmoscope is used to detect disorders of the eye such as glaucoma, melanoma, retinal detachment and optic nerve problems. It also helps to detect diseases like high blood pressure and diabetes. The invention of the ophthalmoscope was of great importance, both for research on the eye and for medicine as a whole.
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