OCT Scans

OCT Scans & Retinal Photography in Holland Park West

An OCT scan builds a cross-section of your retina so we can see the layers beneath the surface. That's where glaucoma and macular changes begin, often well before you'd notice anything. We take the scan in-house at our Holland Park West clinic, together with a retinal photograph.

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What the scan shows

A retinal photograph shows the surface of the retina. It's a detailed, permanent record of what we see when we look into your eye. An OCT scan shows what sits underneath. It uses light (not sound or radiation) to build a cross-section of the retina, so we can look at the individual layers and measure their thickness.

That matters because some of the earliest changes in eye disease happen below the surface. Thinning of the nerve fibre layer around the optic nerve can point to glaucoma before any vision is lost, and fluid or thinning at the macula can be there before a photograph looks abnormal. You get both views from the one capture. The photograph records what we can see, and the scan shows what's beneath it.

When we recommend a scan

An OCT scan isn't part of every eye examination. We recommend one when we think it will tell us something a standard examination can't. That might be a family history of glaucoma, an optic nerve or macula we want a closer look at, diabetes, changes you've noticed in your central vision, or a finding we want to record as a baseline and track over time.

The fee is $60, which covers the OCT scan and the retinal photograph for both eyes. Medicare doesn't rebate OCT imaging, so this is a private fee, separate from your consultation. It doesn't affect the Medicare rebate on your examination. If we think a scan is worthwhile, we'll explain what we're looking for and quote the $60 before we do it.

What the scan is like

It's painless and nothing touches your eye. You rest your chin on a support and look at a target while the scan runs, which takes about a minute per eye. Most people don't need dilating drops, so you can usually drive afterwards. We'll let you know beforehand if you're likely to need drops.

We go through the images with you at the same visit and explain what we're seeing in plain language. We keep the scan so we can compare it with future ones, and that's often where it earns its keep: change over time tells us more than any single scan can. Our OCT is a Topcon Maestro, which takes the scan and the retinal photograph in one automated capture. That's why the two are always taken together.

What's included

Cross-sectional imaging of the retina, macula and optic nerve
Nerve fibre layer thickness measurement around the optic nerve
A retinal photograph, included in the same $60 and never charged separately
No dilating drops needed for most patients
Painless, nothing touches the eye, about a minute per eye
Images explained in plain language at the same visit
A baseline stored to compare against at future visits

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FAQ

Common questions

An OCT (optical coherence tomography) scan builds a cross-section of your retina, so we can see its layers and measure how thick they are instead of only looking at the surface. Our scanner takes a retinal photograph at the same time, so you get both from the one capture. An OCT isn't part of every eye examination. We recommend one when it will show us something a standard examination can't: for example if you have a family history of glaucoma, diabetes, an optic nerve or macula we want a closer look at, or a finding we're monitoring over time. If we think a scan is worthwhile, we'll explain why and tell you what it costs before we do it.

No. Medicare doesn't rebate OCT imaging in optometry, so it's a private fee of $60. That covers the OCT scan and the retinal photograph for both eyes. The two are taken together in one capture and are never charged separately. The fee is separate from your consultation and doesn't affect the Medicare rebate on your examination. We always quote the $60 before going ahead.

No. You don't need a referral to see an optometrist, so you can book with us directly. If your examination shows something that needs an ophthalmologist, we'll refer you and send a detailed clinical summary to the specialist.