1. Aliasger Fakhruddin
Lecturer , SPIO ( a unit of Dr. Agarwal’s eye hospital )
MADDOX ROD
Fakhruddin Aliasger

2.  It is based on the principle of dissociation
 Maddox Rod consists of a series of plano
cylinder lenses about 3 mm in
diameter, mounted in a trial frame lens or in a
refractor head
 A spot of light viewed through the Maddox
Rod appears as an elongated streak
 The Maddox Rod is often colored usually red
Fakhruddin Aliasger

3. Fakhruddin Aliasger

4. Fakhruddin Aliasger

5. Uses
 Used to find out presence of heterophoria or
heterotropia
 Easy for patient to understand
 Easy to administer
 Very useful for vertical deviations.
 May be done in free space
Fakhruddin Aliasger

6. Maddox rod test
 Equipment required are
 1. Maddox rod
 2. Small fixation light
 3. Prisms ( to asses the degree of deviation )
Fakhruddin Aliasger

7. Procedure
 Reduce room illumination.
 Maddox Rod is placed in front of one eye
 Measuring horizontal deviations maddox Rod
axes are placed horizontal which produces
vertical streak
 Measuring vertical deviations maddox Rod
axes are placed vertical which produces
horizontal streak
 Patient initially views with both eyes open
Fakhruddin Aliasger

8. Procedure for horizontal
deviation
 Maddox Rod is placed horizontally (vertical
streak) in front of right eye
 With strabismics, the Maddox Rod is best
placed over the fixating eye
 Ensure that patient can see white light and
streak simultaneously
 Ask if the streak is to the right or to the left
of the light
Fakhruddin Aliasger

9. Fakhruddin Aliasger

10.  With maddox rod infront of right eye
 If the vertical streak of line passes directly
through the centre of the spot light it
indicates orthophoria
 If the vertical streak of light appears to the
left of the spot light it indicates exophoria
 If the vertical streak of light appears to the
right of the streak light it indicates esophoria
Fakhruddin Aliasger

11.  The amount of deviation can be assessed by
placing prism bar in front of the eye
 Place base out for eso and base in for exo
deviation
 Keep on increasing the strength of the prism
until the streak of the light passes through
the centre of the prism
 The strength of the prism indicates the
amount of deviation present
Fakhruddin Aliasger

12. For vertical deviations
 Same procedure is followed except maddox
rod is placed with its axes vertically producing
horizontal streak of light
 If the horizontal streak of light is above the
fixation light it indicates presence of hypo
deviation
 If the horizontal streak of light is below the
fixation light it indicates presence of hyper
deviation
Fakhruddin Aliasger