How does a pachymeter work?

The Occuity PM1 pachymeter uses an optical technique which means it is completely non -contacting, unlike existing invasive ultrasound pachymeters, which have to directly contact a patient's eye. The measurement principle is a called a confocal scan – a tightly focussed beam of invisible light is scanned through the cornea and the reflections are detected and analysed to determine the thickness of the cornea.

Who can operate the Occuity PM1 pachymeter?

As the PM1 is non-contacting and cannot hurt the patient, it can therefore be used by a wide range of operators both clinician and technicians. It is easy to use thanks to it’s intuitive interface and can be taught in mere minutes.

What price-range do you anticipate the device will be in?

We intend that the price will be competitive with the existing ultrasound meters but will have many significant advantages, such as the fact it is non-contacting, provides a better customer experience, uses no consumables and is safer and easier to operate.

What practice environments do you anticipate Occuity PM1 pachymeter will benefit the most?

Most practice environments would benefit from a pachymeter, primarily in order to better understand the patient’s risk of glaucoma. The Corneal Centre Thickness (CCT), can affect the validity and accuracy of the IOP (intra ocular pressure) measured by the tonometer. Knowing the CCT will allow clinicians to understand if their tonometer is actually under or over estimating the IOP. Many clinicians also make the mistake of not knowing what their tonometer assumes corneal thickness to be. Most non-contact tonometers assume a corneal thickness of 550 microns, whereas the Goldmann assumes a thickness of 520 microns.

If a practice is involved in Glaucoma shared care, for example, they should measure CCT and provide this with their reports, along with IOP and sometimes ‘corrected’ IOP.

Patients with thinner corneas are at a higher risk of glaucoma as well, so understanding the risk factors is important.

However, there are also other circumstances where CCT may be useful, such as detection of Fuch’s endothelial dystrophy in post cataract patients, detection or progression of KCC (Keratoconus) or other corneal ectasia’s and also assessing the stability of corneal grafts.’

It takes just a few seconds – is this for one reading or multiple? How many readings are required per eye?

The meter actually scans at ~200Hz so collects many scans each second. So multiple readings are collected but the result is displayed as the average of those along with the standard deviation (variability) figure.

Does it measure IOP as well as corneal thickness?

No, although pachymetry is used in combination with IOP measurement in the diagnosis of glaucoma, our meter is a pure pachymeter. Our patented technology offers other uses and we are of course researching and developing these.

Does the PM1 require any consumables?

No. One one of our technology’s main advantages is that, being non-contacting, no consumables are required and there are no ongoing costs. This also provides other advantages such as the fact that there is no need for drops to numb the eye and no need for post contact cleaning. Overall this means consultations are much quicker, which is advantageous for busy operators. The reduced need for cleaning, also means there is no risk of ‘probes’ being damaged, as can happen with the cleaning of contacting ultrasound pachymeters.

How do I purchase the pachymeter?

Occuity will be working with distributors in each country. Please visit x page on our website to find the distributor in your region. Discussions are in progress in other regions and we will announce our partners once these are finalised, but please express your interest if a distributor has not yet been selected for your region. Click here

How do I become a distributor?

If you are interested in becoming a distributor, please contact us.

Why does the pachymeter use optical technology?

Occuity uses an optical technology in which a tightly focused beam of light is scanned through the eye. When the focus impinges on a surface a bright reflection is seen which allows the meter to know exactly where that surface is.

In pachymetery we collect the reflections from the front and back surfaces of the cornea and this allows us to measure its precise thickness.

The use of light has a number of advantages. As the wavelength of light is much smaller than that of ultrasound the meter is capable of being significantly more accurate. Light can also be shone into the eye from a distance so the meter can be completely non-contacting. Occuity has also been able to use its expertise in optics to adapt a telecommunications component called a bi-di to act as the source and receiver in the meter and this allows us to make meters that are very compact and very cost effective.