Marc Antoine Louis Félix Giraud-Teulon 1816-1887

c1861

Giraud-Teulon invented the first binocular ophthalmoscope in 1861.

He employed a solid rhomboid prism for each eye with their apices meeting in a vertical plane. There was no adjustment for different inter pupillary measurements so that only those with an average IPD would have achieved a stereoscopic view of the fundus.

Light from a gas lamp mounted above the patient’s head was directed towards the concave mirror of the ophthalmoscope. This mirror, with its large central aperture, was placed in front of the apices of the rhomboid prisms. The mirror could be tilted horizontally.

The original ophthalmoscope was fitted with base out prisms behind the eyepieces to assist convergence. Later models had two powers of prisms, either round or rectangular, held in a slide.

The handle could be screwed into the chassis for left- or right-hand use. In some models the handle was at an angle, in others the handle was secured in a horizontal position.