If you are in the dental industry, you would have definitely heard about dental loupes. After the innovation of loupes, they are being used by doctors, clinicians, and surgeons for better accuracy and precise treatment of the patients. Once dental workers start using loupes, they never perform treatment without wearing them. They have known the benefits of dental loupes after trying them for once.
There are plenty of benefits tagged along with dental loupes such as proper body posture is maintained, enhanced vision, and all this ultimately results in better patient care. Earlier, there were plenty of issues faced by dentists like aches, body pains, headache, and much more. These issues were solved with the use of loupes.
Loupes have to be customized based on every individual due to different requirements from one person to the other. It is advisable to go with customized options for getting better results with loupes. There are several factors that you need to keep in mind while purchasing a loupe. The most significant of all is magnification. It is essential to get loupes with proper magnification power for getting effective results.
The range of magnification varies between 2.5x to 5.5x. Generally, you will find two different types of dental loupes when you are out there to purchase one. The first one is the Galilean Loupe and the other one is Prismatic Loupe. Let us have a look at the types of loupes as well as the different levels of loupe magnifications to make it easy for you to find the right one for yourself.
What are Galilean Loupes?
Galilean Loupes are made up of a concave eyepiece lens and a convex objective lens. With the help of both lenses working together, it becomes pretty easy to obtain a clear image. You can purchase these types of loupes with magnification power ranging from 2.0x to 3.0x. These loupes are considered to be ideal for ophthalmology, dental, and surgical professions because of their adaptability, lightweight design, and affordable prices.
What are Prismatic Loupes?
Prismatic Loupes are also famous as Keplerian Loupes. They are used for getting higher magnification and better clarity while treating patients. These loupes are made with the use of two or more convex lenses.
These loupes have been designed for getting magnification power ranging from 3.5x to 6.0x. Still, there are certain varieties of lenses available to get up to 8.0 magnification.
Galilean Loupe Magnifications
- Galilean Loupes with 2.5x Magnification
If you are using the loupes for the first time, you should go with dentist loupes that have 2.5x magnification. These loupes are an ideal one for all those who are not comfortable with heavier loupes. You will receive the widest field of view as well as see every detail with maximum efficiency through 2.5x magnification.
It is the entry-level magnification and this is used by practitioners in different fields such as ear nose throat, neuro surgery, orthopedics, cardiovascular treatments, dental hygienists, ophthalmology, and much more.
- Galilean Loupes with 3.0x Magnification
Dental loupes with 3.0x magnification are for intermediate users who have a hang of loupes but are looking for some extra magnification power. When you switch from 2.5x to 3.0x, you will get a smaller field of view to see smaller details with better clarity. The professionals using 2.5x magnification upgrade their loupes after some time to move to 3.0 magnification power. This is the reason why these loupes are used by the same people who use the loupes with 2.5x magnification.
Prismatic Loupe Magnifications
- Prismatic Loupes with 3.5x Magnification
As compared to the Galilean loupes, prismatic loupes with 3.5x magnification are heavier and they offer more depth of field to the users. As there is an increase in magnification, there is a slight reduction in the field of view as compared to the loupes with 3.0 magnification. If you are a specialist and have to deal with smaller areas, then this would be an ideal choice for you.
The image could be darker without the presence of light and this is the reason why these surgical loupes generally come with light. As you move to 3.5x magnification power, you will have to move to Prismatic loupes instead of continuing with Galilean loupes. These loupes are usually used by attendees in endodontics, OBGYN, cardiac surgery, plastic surgery, ENT, etc.
- Prismatic Loupes with 4.5x Magnification
These loupes are made for providing higher levels of accuracy and precision that are ideal for procedures like tendon repair or blood vessel repair. As these loupes offer higher magnification power, they provide a much more clear and detailed view. This makes it a bit heavier as compared to the others and due to their powerful magnification, they offer a narrower field of view.
If you are using Prismatic loupes with 4.5x magnification, you will experience sharpness and excellent color vibrancy. These loupes are generally used by attendees in urology, orthopedics, OG-GYN, neuro surgery, plastic surgery, and ear nose throat.
- Prismatic Loupes with 5.5x Magnification
These are the most powerful loupes offering 5.5x magnification and this makes them the heaviest of all. They have been made especially for professionals in different fields such as orthopedics. At some places, these loupes with 5.5x magnification are used in place of a surgical microscope. If you have to work in a very small area and need precise details, then you should go with these loupes.
Conclusion
Magnification power plays an important role when it comes to dental loupes. Before purchasing a loupe, you should have a look at its magnification power for getting your hands on the best ones. So, you should choose a loupe with magnification that is necessary for your purpose.
The magnification power will change as you move from one brand to the other. Decide the purpose and test out different loupes for finding the required magnification for your loupes.
