The PhotoScreener™ is a camera which takes instant pictures of a patient's eyes. The photographic process produces bright crescents on the film if a problem, such as a refractive error, is present.
The size of each crescent is proportional to the size of the refractive error, while its position indicates the type of vision problem present. Immediate on-site interpretation and comparisons of the photograph enables detection of problems including amblyopia (“lazy eye”), myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), astigmatism and strabismus, as well as cataracts and other media opacities.
Portable and simple to operate, the PhotoScreener™ is also non-threatening to young patients for whom the importance of early detection cannot be over emphasized. It also does not require verbal interaction from the child, making it especially suitable for preverbal and difficult-to-screen children.

Designed for public health professionals, mass screening groups, pediatricians, family physicians, and eye doctors, the PhotoScreener™ offers many advantages at a price that is thousands of dollars less than alternatives. Refractive errors, ocular misalignments and media opacities can be easily identified with both high accuracy and cost-effectiveness.
The PhotoScreener™ uses a special, high-speed (ISO 3200) Polaroid film, and is the only commercially available photoscreener to offer instant photographs of the eye for immediate interpretation. Use of the PhotoScreener™ is a reimbursable procedure with many insurance companies, including Medicaid in most states.

The instant pictures produced by the PhotoScreener™ can allow for the detection of eye disorders through bright “crescents” that may appear on the eyes. Depending on the size and position of the crescents, various eye disorders can be detected.  Interpretation and comparisons of the photographs enables detection of problems including myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), astigmatism and strabismus, as well as cataracts and other media opacities