conducted by trained and experienced personnel - a feature that increases the cost and decreases the number of examiners qualified to perform them. Findings from slit lamp examinations are generally considered to be subjective and qualitative. For example, one ophthalmologist may rate a patient's anterior chamber reaction as 1+ cell with trace flare while a specialist might rate the same patient's anterior chamber reaction as 2+ cell with 2+ flare. Without any objective documentation of the examination findings from that specific visit, it can be difficult to determine in retrospect which assessment was correct. Another limitation of slit lamps is that they must be manually maneuvered during an examination. This freedom means that slit lamp exams may be conducted differently at different patient visits and in different locations around the world. And this variability may have a negative impact on standardization of terminology and exam protocols. Despite these features and limitations, slit lamp exams are still a cornerstone of the ophthalmic exam. Like slit lamps, OCT imaging devices provide magnified, cross-sectional views of transparent tissues in the eye. Unlike slit lamps, OCT devices store tomographic images that can be 1) acquired consistently using the same protocol at each patient visit in every location around the world, 2) operated by less expensive personnel with less training and experience than a slit lamp, 3) objectively and quantitatively analyzed by the user and/or computer software, and 4) retrospectively or longitudinally assessed in both clinical trials and in clinical practice. At the current time, it is unclear which findings from slit lamp biomicroscopy might be missed with OCT biomicroscopy, and vice versa. Technology Until recently, OCT hardware limitations have made OCT biomicroscopy difficult or impossible. Time Domain OCT (TD-OCT) The major limitation of TD-OCT that prevents its use for OCT biomicroscopy is speed. Conventional commercial TD-OCT systems are limited to an acquisition speed of 400 A-scans per second with a depth of 2mm. Assuming that an OCT biomicroscopic system must cover a 15mm x 15mm planar area of eye tissue with an average depth of 24mm (5,400 cubic mm), it would take a conventional TD-OCT system more than one day to capture OCT biomicroscopic data on a single pair of eyes. Spectral Domain OCT (SD-OCT) SD-OCT systems are 50-100x faster than TD-OCT systems and therefore can cover the required tissue volume for OCT biomicroscopy in a single eye in approximately eight minutes (assuming an