Fundus photography

Fundus photography provides high-resolution pictures of the inner wall of the back of your eye, known as the fundus. The images allow your eye doctor to examine your retina, macula, optic nerve, blood vessels, and other structures important for clear vision and eye health. This test can detect conditions before symptoms appear, and it can monitor an eye disease to see if it’s improving, getting worse, or remaining stable with treatment.

Eye specialists at Penn Medicine Ophthalmology use fundus photography and other neurodiagnostic tools to carefully evaluate the health of your eyes. Used during eye exams, fundus photos can establish your baseline eye health, track changes over time, and detect diseases early. Fundus photography is also used by our neuro-ophthalmologists to help diagnose neurological conditions that affect your vision and eyes. This quick, noninvasive test is an important instrument for delivering routine and specialized eye care.

Sometimes fundus photography is combined with another type of retinal imaging called optical coherence tomography (OCT) to diagnose and monitor eye diseases. These tests can complement each other to give your doctor a full picture of your eye health. Fundus photography produces two-dimensional images using a fundus camera with multiple lenses. OCT takes three-dimensional images by reflecting infrared light off your retina, allowing your doctor to see the layers of your retina.

Fundus photos taken during your regular eye exam help screen for diseases that may affect your eyesight. If you’re having vision changes or other symptoms, like eye floaters, your doctor may use fundus photography to diagnose and monitor eye conditions.

This test can help detect:

• Diabetic retinopathy and other retinal diseases
• Retinal detachment or retinal tears
• Age-related macular degeneration
• Conditions of the optic nerve, like optic disc edema
• Glaucoma
• Uveitis

Before your provider takes photos, you may be given eye drops to dilate your pupils. After the eye drops take effect, you’ll sit in front of the camera with your chin and forehead on rests. If your doctor is using a standard fundus camera, a light will shine into your eye, and your provider will take pictures. If your eye specialist is using a wide-field, laser-based camera, you’ll look at a target as a green light briefly moves across your vision and photos are taken. The process takes only a few minutes and is painless. Your eye specialist will review the images with you immediately after the test.

There’s no recovery needed after the test, so you can go back to your usual activities. If you were given dilating eye drops, your near vision will be blurry, and your eyes may be sensitive to light for several hours. Wearing sunglasses in bright light can reduce any discomfort until the drops wear off.

Tools like fundus photography help Penn Medicine’s specialists in ophthalmology, neurodiagnostics, and neuro-ophthalmology provide you with care options that meet your personal needs. Whether you’re here for routine eye care or treatment for a medical condition, you can trust our experienced providers to support your long-term eye health.