Optical Device to Improve Surgeon's View

A new optical instrument called Varioscope is designed to improve a surgeon's view and overcome the limits of current optical devices, especially in microsurgery. The instrument, developed in close cooperation with leading hospitals in Austria, combines the advantages of operating microscopes and surgical telescopes with perfect mobility and can easily cope with rapidly changing environments.

Varioscope is described by its developers as a binocular close-distance telescope featuring state-of-the-art optics, with autofocus, zoom, and automatic parallax control. Autofocus provides automatic distance metering and focusing. Even small changes of distance are registered, and the lenses focus as fast as the human eye. The zoom range allows magnification between 3.6 and 7.2. A balanced headset takes disturbing weight off the forehead and nose. A footswitch is easy to use and allows intuitive operation.

Varioscope is being marketed by Life Optics (Vienna, Austria), which owns the worldwide patents for the device. The company recently received the Kaplan Medal for the Varioscope, which is awarded to inventors or enterprises that have created outstanding inventions of special value.