TY - JOUR
T1 - The Effect of a Head-mounted Low Vision Device on Visual Function
AU - Wittich, Walter
AU - Lorenzini, Marie Céline
AU - Markowitz, Samuel N.
AU - Tolentino, Michael
AU - Gartner, Scott A.
AU - Goldstein, Judith E.
AU - Dagnelie, Gislin
N1 - Funding Information:
This multisite, prospective, single-arm study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under study number NCT02616900 and received ethics approval in Canada and the United States through the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (Quebec, Canada) and the institutional review boards of the Wilmer Eye Institute (Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD) and the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center (Ann Arbor, MI), whereas IRB Services in Aurora (Ontario, Canada) oversaw ethical conduct of the study at the University of Toronto and two private low vision centers in Florida. Recruitment was conducted at the Johns Hopkins University Wilmer Eye Institute, the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center, the Center for Retina and Macular Disease (Lakeland, FL), the Lighthouse for the Blind of Palm Beaches (Palm Beaches, FL), the Toronto Western Hospital, University of Toronto (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), and the School of Optometry, University of Montreal, as well as its affiliated rehabilitation centers (Montreal and Longueuil, Quebec, Canada).
Publisher Copyright:
© Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
PY - 2018/9/1
Y1 - 2018/9/1
N2 - SIGNIFICANCE Head-mounted low vision devices have received considerable attention in recent years owing to rapidly developing technology, facilitating ease of use and functionality. Systematic clinical evaluations of such devices remain rare but are needed to steer future device development. PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to investigate, in a multicenter prospective trial, the short-A nd medium-term effects of a head-worn vision enhancement device (eSight Eyewear). METHODS Participants aged 13 to 75 years with stable vision (distance acuity, 20/60 to 20/400; visual field diameter >20°) were recruited across six sites. Data were collected at baseline (no device), at fitting (with device), and after 3 months of everyday use. Outcome measures were visual ability measured by the Veterans Affairs Low Vision Visual Functioning Questionnaire 48, distance acuity (Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study), reading performance (MNREAD chart), contrast sensitivity (MARS chart), face recognition, and a modified version of the Melbourne Low Vision Activities of Daily Living (ADL) Index. RESULTS Among the 51 participants, eSight introduction immediately improved distance acuity (0.74 ± 0.28 logMAR), contrast sensitivity (0.57 ± 0.53 log units), and critical print size (0.52 ± 0.43 logMAR), all P <.001, without any further change after 3 months; reading acuity improved at fitting (0.56 ± 0.35 logMAR) and by one additional line after 3 months, whereas reading speed only slightly increased across all three time points. The Melbourne ADL score and face recognition improved at fitting (P <.01) with trends toward further improvement at 3 months. After 3 months of use, Veterans Affairs Low Vision Visual Functioning Questionnaire 48 person measures (in logits) improved: Overall, 0.84, P <.001; reading, 2.75, P <.001; mobility, 0.04, not statistically significant; visual information, 1.08, P <.001; and visual motor, 0.48, P =.02. CONCLUSIONS eSight introduction yields immediate improvements in visual ability, with face recognition and ADLs showing a tentative benefit of further use. Overall, visual ability, reading, and visual information showed greatest benefit with device use. Further studies need to examine benefits of practice and training and possible differential effects of underlying pathology or baseline vision.
AB - SIGNIFICANCE Head-mounted low vision devices have received considerable attention in recent years owing to rapidly developing technology, facilitating ease of use and functionality. Systematic clinical evaluations of such devices remain rare but are needed to steer future device development. PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to investigate, in a multicenter prospective trial, the short-A nd medium-term effects of a head-worn vision enhancement device (eSight Eyewear). METHODS Participants aged 13 to 75 years with stable vision (distance acuity, 20/60 to 20/400; visual field diameter >20°) were recruited across six sites. Data were collected at baseline (no device), at fitting (with device), and after 3 months of everyday use. Outcome measures were visual ability measured by the Veterans Affairs Low Vision Visual Functioning Questionnaire 48, distance acuity (Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study), reading performance (MNREAD chart), contrast sensitivity (MARS chart), face recognition, and a modified version of the Melbourne Low Vision Activities of Daily Living (ADL) Index. RESULTS Among the 51 participants, eSight introduction immediately improved distance acuity (0.74 ± 0.28 logMAR), contrast sensitivity (0.57 ± 0.53 log units), and critical print size (0.52 ± 0.43 logMAR), all P <.001, without any further change after 3 months; reading acuity improved at fitting (0.56 ± 0.35 logMAR) and by one additional line after 3 months, whereas reading speed only slightly increased across all three time points. The Melbourne ADL score and face recognition improved at fitting (P <.01) with trends toward further improvement at 3 months. After 3 months of use, Veterans Affairs Low Vision Visual Functioning Questionnaire 48 person measures (in logits) improved: Overall, 0.84, P <.001; reading, 2.75, P <.001; mobility, 0.04, not statistically significant; visual information, 1.08, P <.001; and visual motor, 0.48, P =.02. CONCLUSIONS eSight introduction yields immediate improvements in visual ability, with face recognition and ADLs showing a tentative benefit of further use. Overall, visual ability, reading, and visual information showed greatest benefit with device use. Further studies need to examine benefits of practice and training and possible differential effects of underlying pathology or baseline vision.
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U2 - 10.1097/OPX.0000000000001262
DO - 10.1097/OPX.0000000000001262
M3 - Article
C2 - 30153237
AN - SCOPUS:85052717768
SN - 1040-5488
VL - 95
SP - 774
EP - 784
JO - Optometry and Vision Science
JF - Optometry and Vision Science
IS - 9
ER -