Search

Five table-top tasks were developed to test the visual search ability of children and young people in a real-world context, and to assess the transfer of training-related improvements in visual search on computerised tasks to real-world activities. Each task involved searching for a set of target objects among distracting objects on a table-top. Performance on the Table-top Visual Search Ability Test for Children (TVSAT-C) was measured as the time spent searching for targets divided by the number of targets found. A total of 108 typically developing children (3–11 years old) and eight children with vision impairment (7–12 years old) participated in the study. A significant correlation was found between log-transformed age and log-transformed performance (R 2 =.65, p = 4 × 10−26) in our normative sample, indicating a monomial power law relationship between age and performance with an exponent of − 1. 67 , 95 % CI [ − 1. 90 , − 1. 43 ]. We calculated age-dependent percentiles and receiver operating characteristic curve analysis indicated the third percentile as the optimal cut-off for detecting a visual search deficit, giving a specificity of 97. 2 % , 95 % CI [ 92. 2 % , 99. 1 % ] and sensitivity of 87. 5 % , 95 % CI [ 52. 9 % , 97. 8 % ] for the test. Further studies are required to calculate measures of reliability and external validity, to confirm sensitivity for visual search deficits, and to investigate the most appropriate response modes for participants with conditions that affect manual dexterity. In addition, more work is needed to assess construct validity where semantic knowledge is required that younger children may not have experience with. We have made the protocol and age-dependent normative data available for those interested in using the test in research or practice, and to illustrate the smooth developmental trajectory of visual search ability during childhood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Rehabilitation can improve visual outcomes for adults with acquired homonymous visual field loss. It is unclear, however, whether rehabilitation improves visual outcomes for children because previous training schedules have been tiresome, uninteresting, and have failed to keep them engaged. In this study, we assessed whether children and young people with homonymous visual field loss would adhere to six weeks of unsupervised compensatory training using a specialized video game. Methods: Participants aged between 7 and 25 years with homonymous visual field loss completed tabletop assessments of visual search across four site visits. Two baseline assessments separated by four weeks evaluated spontaneous improvements before training began. Participants were then given a copy of the video game to use unsupervised at home for six weeks. Two follow-up assessments separated by four weeks were then conducted to evaluate immediate and acutely maintained effects of training. Results: Fifteen candidates met the inclusion-exclusion criteria, nine participated, and eight completed the study. Participants completed an average of 5.6 hours of unsupervised training over the six weeks. Improvements on in-game metrics plateaued during week three of training. The time taken to find objects during tabletop activities improved by an average of 24%-95% CI (2%, 46%)-after training. scussion: The findings demonstrate that children and young people with homonymous visual field loss will engage with gamified compensatory training, and it can improve visual outcomes with less of a time commitment than has been required of adults participating in non-gamified training in previous studies. Appropriately powered, randomized controlled trials are required to evaluate the validity and generalizability of observed training effects. Implications for practitioners: Rehabilitation specialists can use specialist video games and gamification technique to engage children and young people with homonymous visual field loss in long-term unsupervised training schedules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]