Second year dental student who cannot get used to my loupes for the life of me.

[StudentDentistsRock]

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Hey everyone,

I’m a second year dental student here. Gonna try to keep this short.

i simply cannot get used to using my loupes. I absolutely HATE them. I always trY them on when drilling but end up taking them off 15-20 min into my preclinic lab session. I prefer regular vision, but my posture kills me.

I feel like i need the tooth to be up in my face for me to be properly working/drilling. When I’m doing crown preps for instance with my loupes on, I have a hard time telling how deep into the tooth I am going. I also have a hard time seeing tooth line angles and the finish line of my preps. I have a headlight, and i have a station light, both which i tried adjusting multiple times, but no luck. Although the tooth is in focus when I am working (I am working at the measured optimal distance for the loupes), the tooth just seems far away (if that makes sense). I want the tooth to be in focus just as it is with my loupsets on, but I want the tooth closer to my eyes.

The mag on my loupes is 2.55 i believe (it’s like 2 Point something. Not entirely sure of decimal point). design for visions, who measured us for our loupes, also selected this mag for all students, and it does not seem to be working for me. I feel like a higher mag is what I need. However, some issues with this is that my professors are warning me against a higher mag and telling me a higher mag will not help my case. They keep telling me I’ll eventually get used to them, but after a year and a half, i have not gotten used to them and I’ll be entering the clinic in a few months and need to find a solution asap. Another issue with getting higher mag loupes Is that Desing for visions is forcing me to buy a new set up loupes for a few thousand $, which i can’t do financially. they won’t even let me try on the higher mag loupes before purchase too (the agent that comes to our school every few weeks strongly warned me against getting higher mag loupes. He just remeasured me and adjusted my loupes accordinglY earlier this year. Still no good).

Not sure what to do here friends. Any suggestions on how to go about this? I’m literally the only student in my class who does not use his loupes and this is starting to take a toll on my back/posture.

Edit:
My deepest apologies for any typos. Currently studying for an exam and wanted to post this real quick. not really sure who else to ask for help.

 

[TanMan]

Hey everyone,

I’m a second year dental student here. Gonna try to keep this short.

i simply cannot get used to using my loupes. I absolutely HATE them. I always trY them on when drilling but end up taking them off 15-20 min into my preclinic lab session. I prefer regular vision, but my posture kills me.

I feel like i need the tooth to be up in my face for me to be properly working/drilling. When I’m doing crown preps for instance with my loupes on, I have a hard time telling how deep into the tooth I am going. I also have a hard time seeing tooth line angles and the finish line of my preps. I have a headlight, and i have a station light, both which i tried adjusting multiple times, but no luck. Although the tooth is in focus when I am working (I am working at the measured optimal distance for the loupes), the tooth just seems far away (if that makes sense). I want the tooth to be in focus just as it is with my loupsets on, but I want the tooth closer to my eyes.

The mag on my loupes is 2.55 i believe (it’s like 2 Point something. Not entirely sure of decimal point). design for visions, who measured us for our loupes, also selected this mag for all students, and it does not seem to be working for me. I feel like a higher mag is what I need. However, some issues with this is that my professors are warning me against a higher mag and telling me a higher mag will not help my case. They keep telling me I’ll eventually get used to them, but after a year and a half, i have not gotten used to them and I’ll be entering the clinic in a few months and need to find a solution asap. Another issue with getting higher mag loupes Is that Desing for visions is forcing me to buy a new set up loupes for a few thousand $, which i can’t do financially. they won’t even let me try on the higher mag loupes before purchase too (the agent that comes to our school every few weeks strongly warned me against getting higher mag loupes. He just remeasured me and adjusted my loupes accordinglY earlier this year. Still no good).

Not sure what to do here friends. Any suggestions on how to go about this? I’m literally the only student in my class who does not use his loupes and this is starting to take a toll on my back/posture.

Edit:
My deepest apologies for any typos. Currently studying for an exam and wanted to post this real quick. not really sure who else to ask for help.

Maybe you have crappy or ill fitting loupes? Many factors could be in play. I suspect it's a combination of things such as:
1. interpupillary distance
2. insufficient magnification/illumination
3. listening to your instructors about loupes. if it doesn't work for you, it doesn't work for you.

Go invest in higher mag loupes, at 2.5x, you might as well not wear loupes and maybe an eyepatch with sunglasses while you're at it. If DFV can't get it right, look for another company. I love my orascoptics, hate SheerVision with a passion. This is something you will be using for a lifetime, a couple grand is nothing if you can't do or see your work.

 

[StudentDentistsRock]

Maybe you have crappy or ill fitting loupes? Many factors could be in play. I suspect it's a combination of things such as:
1. interpupillary distance
2. insufficient magnification/illumination
3. listening to your instructors about loupes. if it doesn't work for you, it doesn't work for you.

Go invest in higher mag loupes, at 2.5x, you might as well not wear loupes and maybe an eyepatch with sunglasses while you're at it. If DFV can't get it right, look for another company. I love my orascoptics, hate SheerVision with a passion. This is something you will be using for a lifetime, a couple grand is nothing if you can't do or see your work.

I agree with you here. I honestly believe I need higher mag loupes. Gonna get in touch with DFV and see what I can work out.

 

[PreDentTechySon]

I agree with you here. I honestly believe I need higher mag loupes. Gonna get in touch with DFV and see what I can work out.

Have them re-measure your distances too. If they’re off it makes a big difference. Sounds like your working length is too close

 

[oralcare123]

Order from different company, don't forget good light. Return yours - they failed to satisfy you. I like my Surgitel

 

[Hnl7]

Try turning off your head lamp or your station lamp. I noticed that too much light from too many angles removed all shadows. Without shadows you lose the ability to see depth as well as usual.

If you have a light on your drill - the combination of your headlamp, overhead, and drill light could be making it more difficult for you.

Try reducing the light and let me know how it goes!

 

[Vicviper]

I remember having such an incredibly difficult time with my loupes at first, and then I realized my interpupilary distance was off as well as the focal length - once this was fixed it was much easier - I'd check with the rep to make sure they aren't wrong. I do recommend getting higher than 2.5 though, I've got 3.5, and I've been using the same pair of loupes for 10 years now.

 

[beannaithe]

Does the tooth look in focus if you're closer than your working distance? If so, your working distance is off. You need to return them and get the correct working distance for your body.

Have you tried adjusting your light to a lower level or ditching the station light? Sometimes too much light can make it hard to work/see things.

I started with a pair of flip-up loupes that I could adjust the IP distance/angulation until I was happy with it. It took me a while to find the sweet spot. When I found the right spot for me, I used them for a while and then, I switched to the TTL loupes.

 

[TanMan]

Keep in mind that the higher magnification, the stronger the light needed to be able to visualize whatever you're doing. Light that's over the top on 2.5x may not be sufficient at 4.5x. Something to keep in mind. A headlight renders all other light sources pointless. My rooms have no op lights, we operate on only loupes. Even my handpieces are not illuminated. I use the endeavor XL with orascoptic and have equipped my hygienists with them as well.

 

[knewstance]

I agree that you need to meet with a rep and get remeasured to have your loupes adjusted.

Just something that I noticed... When I have too much light, I have a hard time visualizing line angles. I turn down/off the light on my handpiece, turn off my chair light, and then also halfway cover my loupes light with the curing cover. Having the decreased light allows me to see the shadows better and actually see the line angles.