The Ultimate Guide to Common Ophthalmology Abbreviations

If you’re an ophthalmologist or work in an ophthalmology practice, you’re probably familiar with GLREF and L Hypo. These ophthalmology abbreviations are common in the industry and can accelerate your practice workflow, freeing up time to see more patients and enhance the overall patient experience. While they are useful, it’s important to avoid creating a confusing alphabet soup that not everyone on your team understands.

To ensure your team is on the same page, use this list of the most popular abbreviations for ophthalmology and follow our tips for educating new staff members about them.

Ophthalmology Abbreviations and Your Practice

Ophthalmology abbreviations speed up clinical documentation and practice workflows. They can be a helpful tool, allowing physicians and staff to take quicker, more cohesive notes during appointments. Ophthalmology abbreviations can also overlap with billing codes, which speed up your revenue cycle.

If entered into an EHR, these abbreviations provide a quantitative look at what procedures and treatments are most popular, improving your ophthalmology marketing. 

Ophthalmology Abbreviations List

Below you’ll find a list of the most popular ophthalmology abbreviations divided into subcategories for ease of access. 

Note: The following list is intended to be representative only and should not be considered a comprehensive list of all common ophthalmology abbreviations.

Abbreviations for lenses, glasses & contacts prescriptions

• B = bilateral 
• CL = Contact Lens
• CL THERA = Contact Lens Therapeutic Contacts
• gl = Glasses
• GLREF = Glasses Refraction

Abbreviations for eye anatomy

• AC = Anterior Chamber
• ARMD = Age-Related Macular Degeneration
• D&Q = Anterior chamber is deep and quiet (normal, without inflammation)
• DD = Disc Diameters in size
• EOM = Extraocular Muscles
• IOP = Intraocular Pressure
• LOE = Loss of Eye
• LOV = Loss of Vision
• OD = Right eye | OS = Left eye | OU = Both eyes
• ON = Optic Nerve | ONH = Optic Nerve Head
• W&Q = Conjunctiva is white and quiet (normal)

Abbreviations for Ophthalmology Examination 

• BOT = No Tears or Breaks in Retina
• cc = with correction
• CVF = Confrontational Visual Fields
• CF = Count Fingers
• DFE = Dilated Fundus Exam | SLE = Slit Lamp Exam | PLE = Penlight Exam
• FHx = Family History
• HM = Hand Motion
• L Hypo = Left Hypotropia | R Hypo = Right Hypotropia
• PH = Pinhole acuity
• PHNI = No Improvement of vision with a pinhole
• VA = Visual Acuity | VAcc = with correction | VAsc = without correction

Abbreviations for Ophthalmology Conditions and Symptoms 

• DR = Diabetic Retinopathy | NPDR: Nonproliferative DR | PDR: Proliferative DR
• Cat = Cataract
• CNV = Choroidal Neovascularization
• CSDME = Clinically Significant Diabetic Macular Edema
• FBS = Foreign body sensation
• GLC = Glaucoma
• KED = corneal epithelial defect (i.e., abrasion)
• NVI = Neovascularization of the Iris | NVA = Neovascularization of the Angle | NVD = Neovascularization of the optic Disc | NVE = Neovascularization elsewhere (usually peripheral retina)
• PEE = corneal punctate epithelial erosions 
• RAPD = Relative Afferent Pupillary Defect
• RD = Retinal Detachment
• SCH = Subconjunctival hemorrhage
• SPK = Superficial punctate keratopathy
• PVD = Posterior Vitreous Detachment

Abbreviations for Ophthalmology Procedures & Treatment

• ACG = Angle Closure Glaucoma
• AION = Acute Ischemic Optic Neuropathy
• ALP = Argon Focal Laser
• ALT = Argon Laser Trabeculoplasty
• b.i.d. = Twice Daily (bis in die)
• COAG = Chronic Open Angle Glaucoma
• CE/IOL = Cataract Extraction with IntraOcular Lens insertion (i.e., cataract surgery)
• DFE = Dilated Fundus Exam | SLE = Slit Lamp Exam | PLE = Penlight Exam
• GRREM = Growth Removal
• IV = Intravitreal (as usually in “IV injection”)
• PFATs = Preservative-Free Artificial Tears

Abbreviation for Ophthalmology Coding and Billing

Most of the abbreviations above relate directly to different diagnoses, treatments, and appointment types, not medical coding and billing. Medical and billing codes (referred to as CPT codes) focus on the administrative side of running your practice and are standardized across practices and with insurance providers. 

CPT codes 99221-99223 and 99231-99233, for example, refer to different inpatient and observation care services within ophthalmology. For a list of common eyecare codes, check out our ophthalmology CPT codes guide.

Educating Staff on Language and Abbreviations

Your staff are your practice’s greatest asset, and they need training on the language and abbreviations your practice uses to perform at their best. By designing (or purchasing) an online or in-person module on ophthalmology abbreviations and codes your practice uses, you can ensure your staff are up to date, improve in-practice communication, and speed up the workflow. This can happen during initial onboarding, though refresher courses may help resolve any persistent inconsistencies and lingering uncertainties and retain staff.

Alongside formal training, you can also provide staff with a handout on abbreviations and ophthalmology CPT codes for convenient reference.

Abbreviations and Your Practice’s EHR  

All team members need to be on board with these abbreviations, and that includes your technological “team member,” namely your EHR. An EHR is designed to store patient records and help document what happens in the office. If your EHR automatically knows and integrates popular abbreviations like ARMD or OD – instead of having your team manually type out what each abbreviation means – the EHR becomes a better team member, helping everyone work more efficiently. 

However, generic EHRs aren’t designed to understand ophthalmology abbreviations. Instead, you need an EHR built specifically for ophthalmology. 

For example, Valley Eye Professionals switched to an ophthalmology EHR that seamlessly integrated to their practice and improved operational workflow. 

Dr. Jody Piltz-Seymour, a glaucoma specialist and cataract surgeon at the practice, reflected, “You don’t want a system that makes you change the way you practice. You want a system like Nextech that enhances your practice and supports you in the way you like to see your patients.”

A quality EHR built for ophthalmology will also offer free training and responsive customer support. Scarsdale Ophthalmology experienced a smooth transition to their new EHR and regular training for staff, making it easy to use the system in less than a week. 

Making Ophthalmology Abbreviations Work for Your Practice

Ophthalmology abbreviations are there to make your practice run more efficiently, not to have your team running around trying to educate everyone on every abbreviation. To ensure your team is operating at peak efficiency, you need robust staff training and an EHR that speaks the language of ophthalmology.

Nextech's EHR is built specifically for ophthalmology and includes thorough implementation with staff training and support. Book a demo to learn more about what our ophthalmology EHR can do for your practice.