Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Upon successful completion, the student should be able to:

1. Use an understanding of ocular disease to assist with patient education.
2. Work within professional parameters to assist with diagnosis and treatment of ocular disease.
3. Use a foundational understanding of ocular pharmacology as it relates to disease for success in future coursework.

The class will be presented by means of lecture/discussion, audio-visual presentations, handouts and demonstrations.

At the beginning of the course, the instructor will detail the methods used to evaluate student progress and the criteria for assigning a course grade. The methods may include one or more of the following tools: examinations, quizzes, homework assignments, research papers.
 

The student will demonstrate understanding of the following themes, issues, concepts, and development of the following skills:

Eye Disease

• Describe four common refractive errors.
• Define infection vs. inflammation.
• Classifications of inflammation and the ocular manifestation.
• Possible causes of a red eye.
• Types of conjunctivitis.
• Describe the two common forms of uveitis.
• Discuss the signs and symptoms of Graves' disease.
• Define thrombus, embolus, clot, aneurysm, ischemia, infarct, artherosclerosis, cerebrovascular accident, and neovascularization.
• List four ocular disorders caused by diabetes.
• List common disorders of the cornea.
• Discuss the causes, prognosis and treatment of corneal abrasions.
• Define cataract and list the various types and causes.
• Describe the difference between primary open angle glaucoma and closed angle glaucoma.
• Describe the process which causes retinal detachment.
• List the primary causes of blindness in the United States and worldwide.
• State the primary function of the immune system and effects of the AIDS virus on the eyes.
• Discuss hypertension as it relates to the eye.
• List common carcinomas of the eye and adnexa.
• Ocular injuries.
• Pituitary and brain tumors
• Pseudo tumors cerebri
• Discuss a Review of Systems as it relates to Ocular Disease
• Explain the object of motility testing and why binocular function is important.
• Explain fusion, diplopia and suppression.
• Describe the physiologic mechanisms (motor and sensory) implicit in strabismus management.
• Describe the characteristics, presentation and natural history of pseudostrabismus, congenital esotropia, accommodative esotropia and intermittent deviations.
• Define restrictive strabismus
• Discuss nystagmus and its consequences.
  
  Amblyopia
• Define amblyopia.
• Describe the types of amblyopia and methods for detection.
• Distinguish possible treatment methods (therapy) for amblyopia.
• Explain the use/effectiveness of convergence training.

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