A new water bath for ultrasonic biomicroscopy

Ultrasonic biomicroscopy (UBM) has added greatly to our understanding of the development of certain forms of glaucoma. Methylcellulose is usually recommended as the appropriate coupling medium between the transducer and the eye because of its increased viscosity, which makes it more easily retained on the eye. A new water bath has been developed that fits the eye so well that saline, a superior coupling agent, can be substituted for methylcellulose. This new water bath is a flexible polysiloxane cup with a beveled inner edge, providing a watertight seal and thus permitting the use of saline as the coupling medium for UBM. Saline, because of its lack of impurities, generates images that are superior in quality to those produced with methylcellulose as the coupling medium.