What do OU, OS, and OD stand for? - TimRoot.com (2024)

How do you pronounce “uterque”

uterque — oo’TEHR’ kooeh

thanks ,,,,,

I still can’t pronounce it 🙁
oo tehr kooeh
how do i say kooeh
like koo eh?
It’s such a hard name

i was taught that OU stands for Ocular Universal

Uterque sounds a little like ‘you turkey’

thanks a lot for useful information.

thanks, this will help me very much

thanks a lot & how to pronounced:?’ouoo turkey’

this is very informative and interactive, no doubt everyone reading this is having fun while learning. I enjoy both the lectures and comments aswell. cheers.

When doing an exam, if I checked the right eye by covering the lefy and the left eye by covering the right, and they are both 20/20. Is it correct to put, OU 20/20 and OS 20/20? OR…can i document, OS 20/20? In other words, if they both tested 20/20, do I have to document them separately. Or can I simply put OU 20/20?
Thank you

You have to document it as OD 20/20 and OS 20/20. OU 20/? means the vision you are getting without covering either eye.

The explanation is very helpful. Just wondering, “oculus dexter”, “oculus sinister” and “oculus uterque”, are they Latin or other language origins? Thanks.

They are Latin!

OU OS and OD are for accurately documenting each or both eye, since the pronunciations are in Latin, we must understand that Latin is considered a dead language, so I feel pronunciation is not as important as understanding the symbolism.

I just started working in Patient Services in an eye care practice and have wondered all week what OS, OD and OU actually mean–thank you for answering my burning question so clearly!

If a patient’s RX reads -.25 pl OS -.25 pl OD with a 2.50 ADD and is having double vision when reading what is the medical term for the problem there are 2 ?

I made a mistake on my question:(it’s supposed to say when they have double vision watching TV ?there are 2 names for this problem,what are the names.

How do I document that eye drops were administered one drop in each eye.
igtt ou??

Yes Liz… That is correct

Great job buddy 🙂

I am buying contacts and the site I am buying them from is asking Right Eye (OD) and Left Eye (OS) then theres a dropdown list under each and I am rather confused what that is about? Would someone please explain to me what the drop down lists are about that have -1 to – 10? I really dont understand what its about, and I cant purchase the contacts until those fields are filled out.

i have : OD: sphere -3.50
cylinder -0.50
axis 020
OS: sphere -2.00
cylinder -0.50
axis 175
So how many degree i have at the right eyes and the left eyes?

i have
OD. +25 sphere. -50 cylinder. 020. Axis. And. OS. + 50 sphere. -50. Cylinder. 125. Axis. And. + 200. + 200. Prism. Please make me understand. How bad my eyes are ? I would appreciate if you could explain in simple terms. Than you

How sinister of the profession to carry on the notion that we lefties are somehow inferior or less able than those of us who are Dexterous. Left and Right would be clearer, simpler. Not sure I like having an eye that is thought of by the trade as sinister!

this is the first time to know these abbreviation many thanks for your help

thanks dear firend

oh thankyou

Wonderful to know what these OD’s and Os etc mean

Very fine explanations. No more guessing for me. The Southpaw thing helps remember OS

Thanks a lot it is very useful for me

what is O.E

i had a medical examination and i heard the doctor said .5 OU.. what does that mean?

It is read as OO-TER-KWE , Oi-KU-LUS (yes, Oi) OO-Ter-Kwe.

Macky: The doctor was describing the “cup-to-disk ratio” to describe your optic nerve. A large ratio, such as 0.6 or higher, is a potential sign of glaucoma. You can read more about cupping here.

This was really great how you explained all these symbols and the comments. This could not be any better. Thank You

Dr. Tim I owe you a lot for learning from your book. I thank you so much for your holy service to students like me without expecting anything.

What does OC stand for.Thanks.

good questions and answers

LOL “you turkey” is the most helpful comment on here.

Thanks for answering my simple question right away on OD/OS

excellent discussion

LOL! THNZ SO MUCH!

thank you …….yes

Oculus dexter = right eye
Oculus sinister = left eye
Oculi uterque = both eyes
(“Oculus uterque” = “both eye”)
and what ….every other day

Thank you very much for teaching me the abbreviations.

Amazing! Thank you Doctor for the very useful video.

Across the pond it is RE rt eye
LE BE both eyes!

Thanks a lot, it is very helpfull mee

The pronunciation for Uterque is, U Turk.

I read the comment regarding OS OD OU and found very valuable. Thanks

Very valuable information about optho

Oculus uterque actually means “each eye,” and therefore should not be pluralized. Oculi ambi would be the correct syntax for “both eyes;” however, in common parlance we use OU as “both eyes.”