Eye Test Can Spot Glaucoma Four Years Earlier

A newly patented eye test that uses spots of light can help to detect glaucoma years earlier than standard tests.

AsianScientist (Jul. 21, 2016) – A team of researchers has developed a testing protocol that can identify glaucoma, a blinding eye disease, four years earlier than current techniques.

Glaucoma involves the slow destruction of the optic nerve at the back of the eye, with early loss mainly occurring in peripheral vision. Four tests are currently being used to diagnose glaucoma: an eye pressure test; observation of the optical nerve; microscopic examination of the anterior eye; and visual field testing using a machine called a Visual Field Analyzer.

“Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of irreversible blindness in the world, and in the early stages patients usually have no symptoms and are not aware they are developing permanent vision loss,” said Professor Michael Kalloniatis, who is the director of the UNSW Center for Eye Health.

A new method developed by researchers at the University of South Wales (UNSW) in Australia involves patients looking at small dots of light of specially chosen size and light intensity. If the patient fails to see the dots, then it indicates blind spots in the eye and early loss of peripheral vision, which could lead to glaucoma.

Unlike current visual field testing systems that use just one test size to measure vision at different locations of the visual field, the UNSW innovation considers that peripheral visual information are processed differently from central vision. This test involves an automated visual field analysis system that uses a pattern of spots of various sizes.

“The current method of visual field testing, which uses just one dot size, is good but not ideal. Our test appears to be much more sensitive at detecting disease in an early stage. On average, we expect we will be able to detect glaucoma four years earlier than at present,” said Kalloniatis.

In all 13 patients assessed using this improved technique for visual field testing, greater vision loss was detected than the standard test. The team is currently assessing up to 30 more patients at the UNSW Center for Eye Health. They intend to conduct a much larger clinical trial to determine its effectiveness.

Findings of the study have been published in Ophthalmic and Physiological Optics while the design has been patented in the US and the European Union.


The article can be found at: Kalloniatis and Khuu (2016) Equating Spatial Summation In Visual Field Testing Reveals Greater Loss In Optic Nerve Disease.

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Source: University of New South Wales; Photo: Pexels.
Disclaimer: This article does not necessarily reflect the views of AsianScientist or its staff.

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