Angle closure can be missed by Van Herick technique

While simple to perform and generally fairly accurate, a recent study has shown that the Van Herick technique for estimating anterior chamber angle depth can be unreliable in some circumstances.

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This applies to males and myopes (people with short sight). The other risk factors are when this technique is performed on individuals of Asian and black race.

​Click the button to read an abstract of the study:

Missed diagnosis with Van Herick technique

As such, it is recommended that when examining people in this demographic, a more reliable test is gonioscopy, especially when performed in a dark room.

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One system of grading the anterior chamber angle depth is the Shaffer grading system, as depicted below:

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