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Contains fulltext : 233650.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Open Access) Background: In Coordinated Joint Engagement (CJE), children acknowledge that they and their social partners are paying attention to the same object. The achievement of CJE, critical for healthy development, is at risk in infants with visual impairment (VI). Research on CJE in these children is limited because investigators use a child's gaze switch between social partner and object to index CJE. Research is needed that identifies CJE in children with VI using behaviors that do not require normal vision and that explores the relationship between CJE and visual function. This study aimed to (a) develop a protocol for identifying CJE in children with VI, and (b) explore the relationship between CJE and infants' visual acuity (VA) and contrast sensitivity (CS), measured with Preferential Looking (PL) techniques and Visual Evoked Potential (VEP). Methods: A protocol that included 9 indices of CJE that did not require normal vision was developed to code videos of 20 infants with VI (mean age =1 year, 6 months, 27 days) and their caregivers. The percentage of CJE episodes in which each index was observed was calculated. Inter-coder reliability was measured using Cohen's Kappa. Linear regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between the infants' visual function and CJE. Results: Inter-rater reliability between a first coder and each of two second coders were 0.98 and 0.90 for determining whether the child participated in CJE. The following indices were observed the most (in 43-62 % of CJE): child's body orientation to caregiver, gaze switch between caregiver and object, and vocalization to caregiver. The only significant model included VA (measured with PL) as a single predictor and explained 26.8 % of the variance in CJE. Conclusions: The novel protocol can be used to identify CJE in children with VI with good inter-coder reliability. The data suggest that children with lower VA exhibited less CJE. 11 p.

Significance On average, older adults (60+) with normal vision read the International Reading Speed Texts (IReST) 37.8 words per minute slower than the standardized values provided by the IReST manufacturer. When assessing reading speed in older adults, clinicians should bear in mind that the IReST norms do not account for these age-related differences. Purpose The purpose of this study was to validate the IReST in an English-speaking Canadian sample of older adults (60+). Methods Canadian English-speaking older adults (n = 25) read all 10 IReST aloud using the same protocol from the original IReST validation study. Results There were significant differences between the older adult sample and the published IReST values for each text (mean difference, -37.84; 95% confidence interval, -41.34 to -34.34). Conclusions Reading speeds of older (60+) Canadian adults fell outside of the standardized values of the English language IReST. Researchers/clinicians who wish to assess older adults' reading speed using the IReST ought to take this discrepancy into account.

Individuals with visual impairment are known to have better auditory abilities than individuals with normal vision. There is a literature shortage that has attempted to assess differential sensitiv...

PURPOSE: Clinical assessment of rod and cone photoreceptor sensitivity often involves the use of extended dark adaptation times to minimise cone involvement or the use of bright adapting backgrounds to saturate rods. In this study we examine a new rod/cone sensitivity test, which requires minimal dark adaptation. The aim was to establish whether rod/cone sensitivity losses could be measured reliably in patients with retinal diseases that selectively affect rods or cones when compared to age-matched subjects with normal vision.\ud \ud METHODS: Flicker modulation thresholds (FMTs) were measured psychophysically, using cone- and rod-enhanced stimuli located centrally, and in four quadrants, at 5° retinal eccentricity in 20 patients (age range: 10-41 years) with cone-dominated (Stargardt's disease or macular dystrophy; n = 13) and rod-dominated (retinitis pigmentosa; n = 7) disease. These data were compared against age-matched normals tested with identical stimuli.\ud \ud RESULTS: Across all retinal locations, cone FMTs in cone-dominated diseases (Median ± IQR: 32.32 ± 28.15% for central location) were greater than a majority (83%; 49/59) of corresponding rod FMTs (18.7 ± 3.29%; p = 0.05) and cone FMTs of controls (4.24 ± 2.00%). Similarly, rod FMTs in rod-dominant disease (14.99 ± 22.58%) were greater than a majority (88%; 29/39) of the corresponding cone FMTs (9.09 ± 10.33%) (p = 0.13) and rod FMT of controls (6.80 ± 2.60 %).\ud \ud CONCLUSIONS: Cone-specific deficits were larger than rod-specific deficits in cone-dominated diseases, and vice versa in rod-dominated disease. These results suggest that the new method of assessing photoreceptor sensitivity has potential application in detecting specific rod/cone losses without the need for dark adaptation.

Purpose: Many individuals drive with uncorrected refractive errors, which has implications for night driving, where poor visibility contributes to the increased crash risk relative to daytime. This study explored how small amounts of refractive blur affects the judgment of the walking direction of night-time pedestrians and whether different types of retro-reflective clothing influence this effect. Methods: Judgement of the walking direction of night-time pedestrians was investigated for 20 young participants with normal vision (mean age, 21.8 ± 1.6 years) for two levels of binocular blur (+0.50DS, +1.00DS) compared to baseline (best-corrected refractive correction). Participants seated in a stationary car with low beam headlamps observed a pedestrian wearing three clothing conditions: retro-reflective vest (1) and retro-reflective biomotion clothing (incorporating thin (2) or thick (3) retro-reflective strips), who walked across the road in three directions (straight across, away or towards the car). The order of conditions was randomised among participants. Participants reported the perceived pedestrian walking direction and how confident they rated their response. Outcome measures included the proportion of correct responses (response accuracy) and confidence ratings. Results: Blur had a significant effect on accuracy in judging pedestrian walking direction; accuracy decreased significantly with increasing blur (p

PURPOSE This study examined the effectiveness of the LuxIQ, the Apple iPad and a smart bulb in assessing optimal colour and illumination to facilitate reading in younger, older and visually impaired adults. METHODS Participants read standardised texts at baseline (normal lighting/no device), then using the Apple iPad, LuxIQ and smart bulb, with their normal vision (20/20 condition) and using a simulated reduction in visual acuity/contrast sensitivity (20/80 condition). Visually impaired participants followed the same procedure used in the 20/80 condition. RESULTS There was a significant interaction between condition and device in younger, F(1.5, 43.51) = 30.41, p

BACKGROUND: Older adults with visual impairments experience a higher risk of falling, and are more vulnerable to adverse health consequences associated with falls than those with normal vision. This study characterizes longitudinal changes in objectively measured physical activity and fear of falling (FoF) occurring after various types of falls in visually impaired older adults. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Hospital-based enrollment. PARTICIPANTS: People with glaucoma or suspected glaucoma. MEASUREMENTS: Falls were defined as unintentionally coming to rest on the ground or a lower level, and injurious falls were determined though follow-up calls. Study participants were categorized into three groups–fallers with injurious consequences, fallers without injurious consequences, and non-fallers based on fall status in the first year. Physical activity was assessed by waist-bound accelerometer. FoF was evaluated by questionnaire, with Rasch modeling generating FoF scores where higher scores reflected worse FoF. The three-year longitudinal changes of physical activity and FoF were modeled using mixed-effects models. RESULTS: In linear models fully adjusted for visual field damage and other covariates, physical activity among injurious fallers showed greater annual (per year) declines in daily steps (−425 steps/day, 95% confidence interval [CI]: −793, −57), daily active minutes (−13 minutes/day, 95% CI: −21, −6), and daily moderate and vigorous physical activity (MVPA) minutes (−3 MVPA minutes/day, 95% CI: −5, 0) over the three-year period as compared to non-fallers; however, physical activity did not significantly decline among non-injurious fallers. No longitudinal increases in FoF scores were observed in injurious or non-injurious fallers when compared to non-fallers. CONCLUSION: Among visually impaired older adults, injurious falls identified prospectively over 12 months contributed to a significant decline in physical activity over a three-year period, while minimal changes were observed in FoF.

Purpose: To compare the quality of life of senior first-year students with normal vision and myopia, and to explore the risk factors related to quality of life in students with myopia. Methods: In this study, 1103 senior first-year students were enrolled in ten high schools. These students were divided according to the diopter degree, with 916 myopia students and 187 normal vision students. Visual function indexes, such as naked eye vision, were measured and recorded, and social demographic indexes and the National Eye Institute 25-Item Visual Function Questionnaire (NEI VFQ-25) was used. The differences in quality of life between the two groups were compared. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to explore the possible risk factors for quality of life in myopia students. Results: In the NEI VFQ-25, the total quality of life scores of myopia students (77.06 ± 15.66) were lower than those of normal vision students (85.49 ± 12.37). The difference was statistically significant ( p = 0.007). In the correlation analysis, the total scores of quality of life in myopia students were positively correlated with wearing glasses ( p = 0.049), and were negatively correlated with study time ( p = 0.029). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that study time, wearing glasses and age were risk factors affecting quality of life in myopia students. Conclusion: Our results show that senior first-year myopia students have lower quality of life scores than students with normal vision. Study time, wearing glasses and age are risk factors for quality of life in senior first-year myopia students.

Vision is the one of the most significant function of human body. Many factors can influence on health of eyes and lead to the problem with vision. The aim of the work was to analyze information on myopia in school-age children and to make a set of training exercises for its prevention in them. In article present an overview of problem of myopia in school-age children, it causes and risk factors, possibilities of it prevention by use of different methods, including therapeutic physical training. Proposed complex of exercises designed for children of middle and high school. It includes 13 exercises for 30 min of training twice a day outdoor or in gymnasium. Exercises can be done anone or in pairs. Complex is recommended to children with myopia and children, which have normal vision, for the prophylaxis of impairment of vision. Complex can be used from childhood to to achieve the maximum effect, keep in mind the significant load on the visual analyzer of a modern child.

Purpose VEP-based estimation of visual acuity may be used in cases of suspected malingering to objectify subjective complaints. In such an application, a lack of cooperation needs to be expected. The same may apply to young children with suspected functional impairments. In the present study, we assessed how inaccurate fixation affects the acuity estimates obtained with a VEP technique. Methods VEP-based acuity estimates were obtained by stimulating with a series of different check sizes using a ‘stepwise sweep’ protocol. Sixteen participants were tested with normal and degraded vision under five different fixation conditions (central fixation and eccentric fixation at top, bottom, right, and left edge of the stimulus area). Results The majority of individual acuity estimates with eccentric fixation differed by less than 0.1 logMAR from central fixation, and almost all estimates differed by less than 0.3 logMAR. Median estimates with eccentric fixation differed only slightly (up to 0.08 logMAR) and, except for top fixation with normal vision, non-significantly. However, data quality was lower with eccentric fixation, which increased the probability that no acuity estimate could be derived from the recording. Conclusion VEP-based acuity estimates are relatively insensitive to eccentric fixation. Unnoticed deviations from central fixation in routine applications will probably be smaller than in the present study and will have even less impact on the outcome.

During normal vision, our eyes provide the brain with a continuous stream of useful information about the world. How visually specialized areas of the cortex, such as face-selective patches, operate under natural modes of behavior is poorly understood. Here we report that, during the free viewing of videos, cohorts of face-selective neurons in the macaque cortex fractionate into distributed and parallel subnetworks that carry distinct information. We classified neurons into functional groups based on their video-driven coupling with fMRI time courses across the brain. Neurons from each group were distributed across multiple face patches but intermixed locally with other groups at each recording site. These findings challenge prevailing views about functional segregation in the cortex and underscore the importance of naturalistic paradigms for cognitive neuroscience.One-Sentence SummaryNatural visual experience reveals parallel functional subnetworks of neurons embedded within the macaque face patch system

Purpose To generate UK health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) data for adult patients with moderate-to-severe limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD), unilateral or bilateral, due to physical or chemical ocular burns to help inform economic evaluations of treatments. Patients and Methods EQ-5D-3L with vision bolt-on scores was prospectively measured for one of five clinical scenarios of LSCD described in vignettes in a demographically representative population of 520 UK adults. These were converted to health state utilities using three different UK value sets. A standard gamble (SG) was then undertaken using 12 SG scenarios to examine the component drivers of health utility for the treatment of LSCD. Results For the EQ-5D-3L scenarios, the mean disutility for LSCD with poor visual acuity, pain and disfigurement in both eyes compared to one eye was -0.084 (range=-0.156 to -0.045 across the value sets). The mean disutility of bilateral LSCD with pain, disfigurement, and poor visual acuity compared to unilateral LSCD with only poor visual acuity in one eye was -0.104 (range=-0.151 to -0.078). Similarly, where one eye was affected, pain and disfigurement in combination were associated with a greater mean disutility than improvements in visual acuity alone: -0.011 (range=-0.04 to 0.005). Mean SG utilities were within a narrow range (0.682-0.765). Where one eye was affected, the main driver was disfigurement: mean utility was 0.731 (0.709-0.753) compared to 0.682 (0.659-0.704) when disfigurement was removed compared to vision restored to normal. For bilateral LSCD, mean utilities were 0.693 (0.672-0.715) for normal vision and 0.75 (0.73-0.771) when disfigurement and pain were removed. Conclusion Improvements in pain and disfigurement appeared to be the main factors driving differences in health utilities associated with symptom profiles in LSCD, with improvements in visual acuity having lesser impact.

Surgical Precision to restore both biologic and aesthetic demands of patients is most important in today’s periodontal practice. Technical skills of the clinician are challenged by the limited range of visual acuity. Periodontal microsurgery increases the efficiency of basic periodontal surgical procedures by improving normal vision through magnification along with advance lighting system. Incorporation of magnification in periodontal practice gives precise outcomes which are not achieved with traditional macro surgery in terms of improved visual acuity, ergonomic benefits, decreased patient morbidity, enhanced patient acceptance, rapid healing, passive wound closure and reduced tissue trauma.The aim of this review is to enlighten about periodontal microsurgery, its role in magnification, micro-surgical instrumentation, microsurgical suturing techniques, clinical advancement and application. Keywords: Ergonomics; magnification; microsurgery; precision; techniques

Cet article a pour objectif d’analyser les débats sur les normes définissant l’œil et la vision « normaux » pendant la seconde moitié du XIXe siècle en Europe. Il s’attache en particulier à la création des tableaux ophtalmologiques, l’un des principaux instruments utilisés pour mesurer l’acuité visuelle. Après avoir évoqué le cadre historique dans lequel les tableaux visuels modernes ont été développés, nous présenterons les plus célèbres d’entre eux ainsi que leurs caractéristiques. Nous analyserons ensuite les débats entre ophtalmologistes sur ce que sont une vision ou un œil dits normaux et nous montrerons le décalage entre les définitions théoriques avancées et les résultats des études cliniques. Enfin, nous considérerons la question de la mesure de l’acuité visuelle en dévoilant, d’une part, la volonté des spécialistes d’établir un cadre normatif et, d’autre part, les multiples obstacles qu’ils ont affrontés.

Purpose : This study aimed to compare each accommodative response based on degree of anisopia. Methods : This study was performed with 10 adult males and females(21.60±0.50 years old) under the criteria; 1) no subject had ophthalmic surgery or disease, 2) all subjects were within normal vision range and had no need to correct, and 3) all subjects had same visual functions. The contact lenses with +1.00, +1.50, and +2.00 D were monocularly worn on non-dominant eye one after the other. The accommodative responses were measured by a binocular open-field autorefractometer under the accommodative stimulus of 100, 40, and 20 cm that enabled dynamic measurement. Results : As a viewing distance became shorter the accommodative response increased in both dominant and non-dominant eyes. For non-dominant eyes the accommodative response has decreased as the degree of myopia has become greater in comparison with the naked eyes, while for dominant eyes the accommodative response increased(p

This study aimed to investigate the differences in verbal descriptions of emotions induced by music between adults who are visually impaired (VI) and adults who have normal vision (NV). Thirty part...

Background In patients with symptomatic Rathke’s cleft cyst, transsphenoidal surgery is highly effective at preventing further visual loss and usually allows for some recovery of vision. However, cyst recurrence and the need for re-operation are well recognized. To this end, the aim of this study was to investigate patterns of recurrence and long-term outcomes and to use this information to develop an optimal follow-up strategy. Method A prospectively maintained database was searched over a 10-year period between 1 January 2008 and the 1 January 2018 to identify all adults that underwent transsphenoidal surgery with a new diagnosis of Rathke’s cleft cyst. A retrospective case note review was performed for each patient to extract data on their presentation, investigation, treatment, and outcome. Results In all, 61 eligible patients were identified. The median follow-up was 34 months (range 2–112 months). In the 22 patients with pre-operative visual loss, the outcomes at 6 months were as follows: normal vision (2/22; 9.1%), improved but not normal (7/22; 31.8%), stable (12/22; 54.5%), worse but not blind (1/22; 4.5%), and blind (0/22; 0%). The overall rate of regrowth and re-operation in our study was 19.7 and 11.5%, respectively. The only factor that was significantly associated with recurrence was the presence of residual cystic disease on the post-operative MRI (p Conclusions We propose a follow-up strategy that stratifies patients at “low risk” if there is no residual cyst, with increasing interval scans, or “high risk” if there is residual cyst, with annual visual assessment and scans.

Both luminance contrast and character size are critical factors affecting reading performance. Previous studies reported on the effect of luminance contrast on the reading-speed function, that is, the relationship between reading speed and character size. In particular, when contrast was reduced, the critical print size (CPS) was found to shift to a larger character size even though the maximum reading speed and function shape did not change [Japanese Journal of Ophthalmology 52(1) (2008) 44-47]. In the present study, the effect of luminance contrast on the reading function was quantitatively examined. Japanese phrases with a luminance contrast of 0.03-0.99 were prepared as stimuli. Observers with normal vision were asked to read aloud phrases with several character sizes. Then, the reading functions were obtained for each luminance contrast. CPS was found to increase as the luminance contrast decreased. The relationship between contrast and CPS was linear in log-log coordinates, that is, log-CPS increased as the log-contrast of the characters decreased. It was found that the contrast of the stimulus systematically affects the location of the reading function.

The structural integrity of the cornea and transparency are critical for normal vision. Corneal evaluation in ophthalmology and clinical research requires fast and user-friendly techniques allowing accurate diagnoses and follow-up of pathologies, injuries or surgery. Macroscopic irregularities in the anterior corneal surface are the main cause of irregular refractive vision problems. The microscopic and nanoscopic irregularities within the three-dimensional architecture of cornea are the cause of loss of optical transparency and scattering. In this review, the state of the art of the different corneal imaging techniques with three-dimensional capabilities will be detailed and discussed according to the descriptive level of analysis: macroscopic, microscopic and nanoscopic scales.

Background Color vision has been consistently shown to be unaffected in animals that are raised in dark or in color-deprived environments. However, there are only a few studies that directly addressed the effect of congenital visual deprivation in color perception in humans. Objective The goal of the current study was to assess the effect of congenital visual deprivation on color vision using a panel based color arrangement test. Methods We investigated the recovery of color vision using the Farnsworth D15 test in a group of individuals who had experienced visual deprivation since birth due to bilateral dense congenital cataracts before undergoing cataract-reversal surgery (Congenital cataract, CC, n = 12). In addition, we tested two groups of control participants: (1) individuals who had had non-dense congenital cataract or developed cataract later in their childhood (Developmental cataract, DC, n = 10), and (2) sighted controls with normal or corrected to normal vision (n = 14). Based on the methods proposed by Vingrys and King-Smith (1988), we derived the following metrics of color vision performance: (1) total error score, (2) confusion index, (3) confusion angle, and (4) selectivity index. Results All of the measured indices of color vision performance were unaltered by a period of congenital visual deprivation. Conclusions Our results support the view that, development of visual functions such as color discrimination and color arrangement does not depend on typical visual experience during a sensitive phase in early childhood.

The aim was prepared in order to analyze the linguistic ability of children with visual impairment and children with normal vision. Several features of the narrative episodes produced were investigated, including quantity, quality, the connections between them and the structural elements which they consist of. Central tendency measures and dis-persion measures were applied, in addition to inferential measures. This leads us to the conclusion that the structural parts making up the texts depend on a great extent to the individual style of each subject. However, the two groups are markedly different in cer-tain parts. Finally, pupils who were older and educated to a higher level have shown greater development of narrative ability, engaging more with the essential part quite largely forgotten in the younger pupils’ texts. With regard to the connections established by the pupils between the various episodes making up their narratives, the texts produced by pupils with visual impairments show predominantly temporary connections. Significant differences were found between the texts written by students who had normal vision and those who were blind or partially sighted. The greatest differences were observed in the length of the text and the complete episodes: both measures were greater in the texts writ-ten by students with normal vision.

Purpose: Smartphone use is now ubiquitous and is associated with a range of ocular and visual symptoms. However, little is known about the etiology of the symptoms which accompany smartphone use and the relative contribution of accommodation/vergence versus that of the ocular surface and of blinking. This study examined the effects of 60 min reading on a smartphone on ocular symptoms, binocular vision, tear function, blinking and working distance.Methods: Twelve young adults (18-23 years; 9F:3M) with normal vision and without dry eye, or major accommodative/binocular vision disorders, completed this pilot study. Participants read a novel on a smartphone for 60 min and the following were measured before and after the reading task: eye strain and ocular surface symptoms, non-invasive tear break-up time (NIBUT), lipid layer appearance, tear meniscus height, horizontal fixation disparity, binocular accommodative facility. Spontaneous blink rate and amplitude were counted every 10 min, and viewing distance was measured at the same timepoints. Pre- and post-task comparisons were made using Wilcoxon signed-rank test and changes during the task were assessed using Friedman test. Associations were examined using Spearman's correlation.Results: Eyestrain symptoms and ocular surface symptoms increased after smartphone use, specifically comfort, tiredness and sleepiness items (p ≤ .02). Binocular accommodative facility decreased from a median of 11.3 (IQR 6.6) cycles/min pre-task to 7.8 (2.5) cycles/min post-task (p = .01), but there was no significant change in fixation disparity or working distance. There were no changes in NIBUT, lipid layer or tear meniscus height. Number of incomplete blinks per minute increased from a median of 6 blinks at 1 min to 15 at 60 min (p = .0049). Total blink rate (complete plus incomplete blinks) gradually increased over time, but this trend was not significant (p = .08). A greater increase in incomplete blinks over 60 min of reading was associated with worsening of the overall ocular surface symptoms score (ρ = -0.65, p = .02) and of the tiredness item (ρ = 0.70, p = .01).Conclusions: Extended use of smartphones appears to have important implications for ocular surface health and binocular function.

Purpose To assess the impact of two TYR hypomorphic alleles (R402Q and S192Y) on foveal pit and FAZ morphology. Design Prospective cross-sectional study Participants One hundred sixty-four participants with normal vision (67 males and 97 females; mean ± SD age = 30.5 ± 12.8 years) were recruited. Methods Sequencing of over 100 pigmentation-related genes was performed, and results were reviewed for the presence or absence of the TYR polymorphisms R402Q (rs1126809) and S192Y (rs1042602). Volumetric scans of the macula were obtained for each participant using optical coherence tomography (OCT) and retinal thickness maps were analyzed using custom software. OCT angiography (OCT-A) was used to image the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) which was manually segmented and measured. Linear mixed model analysis was used to assess associations between genotype and foveal pit morphology Main Outcome Measures Foveal pit depth, diameter, volume and FAZ area in relation to the presence of hypomorphic alleles R402Q and S192Y on the TYR gene. Results Heterozygosity for the TYR R402Q allele was associated with decreased pit diameter (p = 0.0094) and decreased FAZ area (p = 0.025). Homozygosity for the TYR R402Q allele was associated with reduced pit volume (p = 0.0005), decreased pit depth (p = 0.007), reduced pit diameter (p = 0.0052) and reduced FAZ area (p = 0.0012). Homozygosity for TYR S192Y was associated with reduced FAZ area (p = 0.016). Heterozygosity for the TYR S192Y allele was not associated with differences in foveal pit depth, diameter, volume or FAZ area (p > 0.05). Conclusion While the role of the TYR R402Q and S192Y hypomorphic alleles in albinism remains controversial, our data suggest that these variants contribute to the extensive inter-individual variability in foveal morphology in the normal population. Our results contribute to the evolving picture of the relationship between ocular pigmentation and foveal morphology.

This article presents the first-year results of a project that aimed to explore the feasibility of using a braille display and a smartphone in society to improve face-to-face communication for a person living with deafblindness, using a simulated communication situation. An applied experimental development design was implemented, followed by a pre-test in the community. Two clinicians and an engineer conducted communication tests with three communication partners with normal vision in a shopping mall. A blind clinician acting as deafblind bought an iPhone case and asked for the location of two stores. Communication partners did not report any difficulties, understood the exchanges, and were proud to have helped a person living with deafblindness. No communication breakdowns or keyboard input incidents occurred. Speech turns were not optimal but can be improved. Clinicians proposed a sequence of three training modules: (1) prior knowledge (basic operations for iPhone, software, and braille display), (2) methods for preparing a face-to-face discussion, and (3) processes during a face-to-face discussion. Results demonstrate the feasibility of using a tactile technological solution coupled with a smartphone to interact with unknown interlocutors. Technology trials form the groundwork for a 9-month case study, involving two individuals with deafblindness.

The issue of lacking reference books in braille in most public building is crucial, especially public places like libraries, museum and others. The visual impairment or blind people is not getting the information like we normal vision do. Therefore, a multi languages reading device for visually impaired is built and designed to overcome the limitation of reference books in public places. Some research regarding current product available is done to develop a better reading device. This reading device is an improvement from previous project which only focuses on single language which is not suitable for public places. This reading device will take a picture of the book using 5MP Pi camera, Google Vision API will extract the text, and Google Translation API will detect the language and translated to desired language based on push buttons input by user. Google Text-to-Speech will convert the text to speech and the device will read out aloud in through audio output like speaker or headphones. A few testings have been made to test the functionality and accuracy of the reading device. The testings are functionality, performance test and usability test. The reading device passed most of the testing and get a score of 91.7/100 which is an excellent (A) rating.

Amblyopia is a developmental disorder of vision associated with higher-order visual attention deficits. We explored whether amblyopia affects the orienting of covert spatial attention by measuring the magnitude of the gaze cueing effect from emotional faces. Gaze and emotion cues are key components of social attention. Participants with normal vision (n = 30), anisometropic (n = 7) or strabismic/mixed (n = 5) amblyopia performed a cued peripheral target detection task under monocular and binocular viewing conditions. The cue consisted of a centrally presented face with left or right gaze (50% validity to target location) and a fearful, happy, or neutral expression. The magnitude of spatial cueing was computed as the reaction time difference between congruent and incongruent trials for each expression. Fearful facial expressions oriented spatial attention significantly more than happy or neutral expressions. The magnitude of the gaze cueing effect in our cohort of mild-to-moderate amblyopia was comparable to that in normal vision and was not correlated with the severity of amblyopia. There were no statistical group or amblyopia subtype differences for reaction time in any viewing condition. These results place constraints on the range of attentional mechanisms affected by amblyopia and possibly suggest normal covert processing of emotional face stimuli in mild and moderate amblyopia.

The study was designed to investigate the role of asymmetric prenatal visual stimulation on the activation of caudomedial mesopallium (CMM) neurons in nine-day-old pied flycatcher nestlings during auditory-guided freezing. Four groups of nestlings were studied: groups 1 and 2 included nestlings with normal vision and visually deprived, respectively, that were incubated and hatched in normal light environment; groups 3 and 4, nestlings with normal vision and visually deprived, respectively, that were incubated and hatched in the dark. The eyes of visually deprived nestlings were covered with non-transparent cups 2 h before the experiment. C-Fos expression was studied. It was shown that densities of neurons activated during freezing response differed in right vs. left CMM only in the group of visually deprived nestlings incubated under light. This suggests that the presence or absence of the asymmetric embryonic visual afferentation may result in the development of different strategies of the visual system integration into defense behavior.

PURPOSE. In glaucoma, visual field defects in the left and right eye may be non-overlapping, resulting in an intact binocular visual field. In clinical management, these patients are often considered to have normal vision. However, visual performance also relies on binocular processing. The aim of this study was to evaluate binocular visual functions in glaucoma patients with intact binocular visual field, normal visual acuity, and stereoscopy.METHODS. We measured in 10 glaucoma patients and 12 age-similar controls: (1) monocular and binocular contrast sensitivity functions (CSF) using a modified quick CSF test to assess binocular contrast summation, (2) dominance during rivalry, and (3) contrast ratio at balance point with a binocular phase combination test. A mirror stereoscope was used to combine the left and right eye image (each 10 degrees horizontally by 12 degrees vertically) on a display.RESULTS. Area under the monocular and binocular CSF was lower in glaucoma compared to healthy (P < 0.001), but the binocular contrast summation ratio did not differ (P = 0.30). For rivalry, the percentage of time of mixed percept was 9% versus 18% (P = 0.056), the absolute difference of the percentage of time of dominance between the two eyes 19% versus 10% (P = 0.075), and the rivalry rate 8.2 versus 12.1 switches per minute (P = 0.017) for glaucoma and healthy, respectively. Median contrast ratio at balance point was 0.66 in glaucoma and 1.03 in controls (P = 0.011).CONCLUSIONS. Binocular visual information processing deficits can be found in glaucoma patients with intact binocular visual field, normal visual acuity, and stereoscopy.

Background: Sports vision is a specialisation of optometry whose objective is to improve and preserve visual function to increase sports performance. The main objective of the present study was to compare the visual expertise of non-athletes to skeet shooting athletes. Methods: Participants underwent an optometric assessment in which all those with severe deviations from normal vision, after compensating for visual abnormalities, were eliminated. After that, the following six visuospatial components were measured: hand–eye coordination, peripheral awareness, fixation disparity, saccadic eye movements, speed of recognition and visual memory. To measure the aforementioned components, the following tests were used: directional arrows, similar and different characters, the dichromatic disparity test, character marking, a tachistoscopic test and tic-tac-toe using COI-vision software. Results: Skeet shooting athletes performed significatively better (p ≤ 0.05) in two out of the six tests: hand–eye coordination and visual memory. Conclusions: Although this study does not support the theory that athletes—in this case, skeet shooting athletes—perform significantly better in most components of the visuospatial tests, visual memory and hand–eye coordination are exceptions. To be more accurate in distinguishing between athletes and non-athletes, specific testing methods that can be used by a wide variety of disciplines should be developed. Training the weakest aspects of athletes can improve their sports performance.

PURPOSE: Autosomal dominant neovascular inflammatory vitreoretinopathy (ADNIV) is a rare disorder characterized by uveitis, retinal neovascularization, and retinal degeneration. We sought to describe the course of treated and untreated ADNIV and to identify risk factors for severe vision loss. DESIGN: Observational case series. METHODS: Clinical data from ADNIV patients from 4 families seen from 1967 through 2019 at a single academic, tertiary referral center were reviewed. The main outcome measures were visual acuity at baseline and follow-up, as well as risk factors for vision loss. RESULTS: A total of 130 eyes from 65 ADNIV patients (45 female, 20 male; mean age 40.8 years, range 6–77 years) were included. Mean best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at presentation was LogMAR 0.59 (about Snellen 20/80). Longitudinal analysis included 84 eyes from 42 patients (31 female, 11 male), with mean follow-up of 17.3 years (range 2–43.6 years). Mean BCVA at last follow-up was LogMAR 1.48 (about Snellen 20/600). The disease accelerated in the fifth decade of life, during which the majority of eyes went from normal vision or mild vision loss to at least moderate vision loss (20/70 Snellen equivalent); 25 eyes from 16 patients (29.8%;) showed a steep trajectory of vision loss to no light perception. Tractional retinal detachment was the greatest risk factor for severe vision loss (BCVA

Myopes exhibit a larger capability of adaptation to defocus. Adaptation produces a boost in visual performance that can be characterized through different metrics. The ability of myopes to adapt to other sources of blur, such as diffusion, has not been studied so far. In this work, a group of 20 myopes with normal vision underwent high-contrast visual acuity (VA) measurements under different viewing conditions, wearing their refractive correction with or without a diffuser (Bangerter filter, BF). VA decreased immediately after wearing the BF of density 0.6, showing a significant relationship with the ocular refraction. After 40 minutes of binocular vision through the BF, a statistically significant increase (p = 0.02) in VA from 0.54 to 0.62 in decimal scale (from 0.3 to 0.2 logMAR) was obtained. No correlation with the refraction was observed. After removing the diffuser, VA returned to baseline. A control group (17 subjects) underwent the same experimental protocol but without diffuser filters. No significant changes in VA were found in this group. We describe a new type of contrast adaptation to blur in myopes caused by scattering, rather than by defocus. The effects of low scattering levels in vision might be relevant in the analysis of early stage of cataract, amblyopia treatments, and myopia understanding.