Diagnostic Equipment Suggestions?

[iDoc2012]

Hey all. I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on which diagnostic kit to get: Keeler, Heine, or WelchAllyn. It will have an opthalmoscope, retinoscope, and some power handles. Maybe I'll get a transilluminator, too. If you have any experience with this equipment, I'd love your input (good and bad). Thank you!

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[eyestrain]

Get the cheapest one. I did, which was Welch Allyn at the time, and it works just fine. Remember, most of the stuff is just a glorified flashlight. Also, if go with Welch Allyn, I wouldn't recommend the panoptic unless you plan on doing a lot of out of the office eye exams. I splurged on it and I've used it probably five times in the five years I've had it.

 

[Karnak]

Whilst I agree with eyestrain that most the instruments are practically the same in terms of their use, I got the Keeler diagnostic set with the Keeler Professional (the shorter, stubbier) ophthalmoscope head. I think it was well worth the money, its good, hardy equipment, but I must admit most of the reason I got it was because I liked the look and feel of it.

Just as a heads up, every Keeler specialist ophthalmoscope I've ever seen rattles when its shaked... probably because of the way the lenses are on a little rail. Dont believe their claims that the glass lenses are vastly superior to the plastic lenses in every other ophthalmoscope - the lenses are so small anyway, and I'm sure your patient's eye's astigmatic error is a much more important determinant of the image clarity than the abbe value of the lenses in the ophthalmoscope.

In short.... you use the equipment for a very long time... get the one you're happy with aesthetically and manually. With the BIOs, however... I think get the cheapest. Theres like $2000 difference between the Welch Alynn and the most expensive, but I cant imagine theres much difference in their function.

 

[alferec]

Welch Allyn is my choice, hands down - it's lightweight (given you get the Li-Ion handles), cheaper than the competition (Keeler and Heine), and dependable. Plus, the ophthalmoscope has an accurate deviation measurement on its fixation target (it's for visuoscopy - you'll find out more about this when you learn about strabismus, if you haven't already). I also like how the fixation cards for the ret is magnetically attached for ease of use.

Ultimately, it seems that the best choice for most folks is what fits well in their hands...that's what I hear over and over again.

 

[drbizzaro]

Hey all. I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on which diagnostic kit to get: Keeler, Heine, or WelchAllyn. It will have an opthalmoscope, retinoscope, and some power handles. Maybe I'll get a transilluminator, too. If you have any experience with this equipment, I'd love your input (good and bad). Thank you!

welch allyn is good for guys with larger hands, because the grip is not too small... it works fine for me

 

[iowaeyes]

I agree, get whatever you like best after you try them. I was afraid to get Welch Allyn for diagnostic kit because I heard it wasn't as good, but after trying them all out, I liked it the best so I ordered it. And I love it. I did get the PanOptic, but I go on VOSH trips, so it comes in very handy there.

Just as a reference, the BIO price difference between a wireless Heine (which is what I got) and the Welch Allyn (wired with a battery pack) was $800. I know this sounds like a lot, but so far to me it was worth it. No one in my class bought Welch Allyn for BIO, and most bought wireless. But again, comfort is a big thing with BIOs too.

 

[prettygreeneyes]

I must be in the minority that got Heine. It was what felt best in my hands, and I'm still very happy with my purchase. You'll learn to like whatever you get. If there is no clear advantage to any brand - get the cheapest one.

 

[4Eyes]

Most of my class got WA diagnostic sets, a few got Heine, and one or two got Keeler. I don't know of anyone who regretted their choice of brand, but those who got one of each kind of WA handle ended up wishing they had both Li Ion. Sorry I'm late to the party, but just wanted to throw that out there.

 

[eyestrain]

Keeler FTW!!! I like to call Welch Allyn 'Crap Allyn' cause they look and feel cheap.

They also work just as well and don't cost nearly as much. I like to call them "I'm-Not-Getting-Screwed-Nearly-As-Hard Allyn".

 

[vsarge0708]

Keeler FTW!!! I like to call Welch Allyn 'Crap Allyn' cause they look and feel cheap.

I can't think of anyone who has the Welch Allyn diagnostic kit that had to do the retinoscopy retakes...

And how's your cobalt blue filter on your ophthalmoscope?

Served.

 

[eyestrain]

I can't think of anyone who has the Welch Allyn diagnostic kit that had to do the retinoscopy retakes...

And how's your cobalt blue filter on your ophthalmoscope?

Served.

Yes! Ownage over a cobalt blue filter. I love optometry.

 

[JMU07]

How's your battery that holds a crappy charge?

True story.. we were all required to get Welch-Allyn and I have to charge mine every couple of days. Other than the battery life I like it.

 

[iDoc2012]

thanks for all of your input! after all of that i got heine because it felt right (and i'm german... got to support my locals haha). i like that you can just throw some batteries in it if your have no power. it looked pretty ninja, too. thanks again!

 

[4Eyes]

Huh, I've never had problems with my WA holding a charge. I graduated in May, and I just saw the little recharge light come on for the first time ever last week.

HOWEVER, I can't disagree with iDoc. If it's ninja, then it is clearly superior. Ninja = win.

 

[iowaeyes]

I had a few classmates who had problems with their Welch Allyn handles, but they told our distributor (Pioneer) about it and they got replacement handles no problem. Mine will hold a charge for weeks and weeks!

 

[prettygreeneyes]

thanks for all of your input! after all of that i got heine because it felt right (and i'm german... got to support my locals haha). i like that you can just throw some batteries in it if your have no power. it looked pretty ninja, too. thanks again!

 

[scuttlebutt]

I have to buy my first diagnostic kit too and Im basing my decision on the ophthalmoscope. Ive narrowed it down to Keeler (Specialist) and Heine (Beta 200s) but I cant decide with each set having its pros and cons. I would say I have a small hand so Im leaning towards the keeler with the slimmer handle but I can also hold the heine quite comfortably. I like the heine being dustproof and shockproof but how much dust would an ophthalmoscope accumulate and how does the 2 ophthalmoscopes compare (looking through the 2 I couldn't tell any difference)? An aside the heine sales rep drop the ophthalmoscope head on the floor to show how durable it was which I thought was pretty cool.

 

[WoodyJI]

I have to buy my first diagnostic kit too and Im basing my decision on the ophthalmoscope. Ive narrowed it down to Keeler (Specialist) and Heine (Beta 200s) but I cant decide with each set having its pros and cons. I would say I have a small hand so Im leaning towards the keeler with the slimmer handle but I can also hold the heine quite comfortably. I like the heine being dustproof and shockproof but how much dust would an ophthalmoscope accumulate and how does the 2 ophthalmoscopes compare (looking through the 2 I couldn’t tell any difference)? An aside the heine sales rep drop the ophthalmoscope head on the floor to show how durable it was which I thought was pretty cool.

I wouldn't base your decision around the ophthalmoscope...odds are good that you'll use your retinoscope 4x as much.

I actually based my decision partially on the next (and more expensive) purchase: BIO. I knew I was going to go with the wireless Heine, so I wanted the consumer loyalty points. Plus, as others have said, I thought their hand-helds were definitely "ninja."

My advice: buy either the most expensive or the cheapest. You get the most for your money either way—taking full advantage of student discounts. What you do depends on whether you're the kind to keep your expensive stuff in mint condition for life, or bang up your cheap stuff as a student and buy better when you're a doctor making the big bucks.

 

[scuttlebutt]

Thanks for your advice. I decided to go with the Keeler Specialist set as it was one of the cheaper options and also after talking to some optometrists they recommended getting one witht the best optics and said Keeler had the best for hand helds and Heine for BIO's and unfortunately the distributors in New Zealand dont offer any loyalty points. Hopefully the money I save now won't be wasted on food and I can put it towards the BIO I'll buy next year.