Win a tonometer

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If sales at Optrafair were anything to go by it would seem that more and more practitioners now own a camera system and have incorporated it into their examination routine. The value of such a system for continued clinical care, as well as for providing a more secure medico-legal baseline is now widely accepted. This increased usage was reflected last year in record numbers of entries to our competition (Optician, June 23, 2006), and to ensure we maintain a high level of entries this year, Keeler is offering prizes worth a total of up to £10,000.

As usual, there will be three individual categories, as explained below, while the major prize will go to an overall winner.

All entries will be considered, so whether a seasoned experienced photographer or a novice, this is an opportunity both to try for a prize and also to show off your photographic and clinical skills in Optician. These pages show a number of entries from last year's competition. See how many conditions you recognise. The answers will be published next week.

Photographic skill

This category allows you to show off your photographic skill. This might be by imaging a lesion difficult to capture, either due to its location, or perhaps its instability, and may require supplementary skills, such as use of scleral indentation or a Volk lens. Past winners have included the capture of a lesion in a very young child and of an active exudation requiring skilled focusing.

Unusual condition

The category for best unusual condition is always competitive. Judges are often left with the feeling that the UK has a disproportionate amount of unusual eye disease. Entries may be of something truly rare presenting in practice, or perhaps an unusual form of a more common condition.

Case study

This is a slight adaptation of our clinical management category of last year. The winner will be a photo, or photos, sent in along with a short description of the case itself. The idea is to reward the entrant that best shows and describes how the use of a camera helped in the clinical management of a particular case (for example by reflecting the location or severity of a lesion for helpful referral, or monitoring a condition through its course) or perhaps the entry reflects how the camera has improved or enhanced the clinical potential of the practice as a whole. Being able to offer a retinal photograph is a definite boon to the business of a practice, so if in any way your entry reflects this it will also be considered.

Overall winner

The major prize will go to the entrant thought by our panel to shine in each of the categories, or simply provides such an outstanding entry that it is felt worthy of the top prize.

Judges

This year the judging panel will be Ann Bolton (Radcliffe Eye Infirmary), Dr James Wolffsohn (Aston University), Brian Tompkins (private practice), Colin West (product manager for Keeler UK) and Bill Harvey (clinical editor of Optician).This year the main prize will be the new Keeler Pulsair intelliPuff non-contact tonometer (worth over £5,250), with other prizes including the new Keeler Spectra headset indirect ophthalmoscope (worth over £1,500) and a selection of high-tech gadgets and consoles.