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Updated: Jun 24, 2026
A Method to Quantify Visual Information Processing in Children Using Eye Tracking
Published on: July 9, 2016
The reliability of frequency-doubling perimetry in young children
Eytan Z Blumenthal1, Amir Haddad, Amjad Horani
1Department of Ophthalmology, Hadassah University Hospital, PO Box 12000, Jerusalem 91120, Israel. eblumenthal@md.huji.ac.il
Insights
Frequency-doubling technology (FDT) visual field testing is reliable for children over 8 years old. Younger children showed less reliable results, with test parameters improving with age.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Visual Science
Background:
- Automated static perimetry is crucial for diagnosing visual field defects.
- Frequency-doubling technology (FDT) is a novel perimetric method.
- Assessing visual field reliability in young children is challenging.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the reliability of FDT perimetry in healthy children aged 4 to 14 years.
- To evaluate the influence of age on FDT visual field test results.
Main Methods:
- A prospective, observational case series involving 40 healthy children (4-14 years).
- Two consecutive visual field (VF) tests using the FDT C-20 program were performed on one eye per child.
- Global measures (mean deviation, pattern standard deviation) and reliability indices were analyzed.
Main Results:
- All children completed the VF test; test duration averaged 4.9 minutes.
- Visual field results, including reliability, showed a significant correlation with age (P<0.05).
- Unreliable VFs were more common in children younger than 8 years (42.9%) compared to older children (23.1%).
Conclusions:
- FDT perimetry is a clinically feasible method for evaluating visual fields in children older than approximately 8 years.
- Test reliability, duration, and reproducibility improve with increasing age in children.
- Age is a significant factor influencing the interpretation of FDT visual field results in pediatric populations.
Objective:
To evaluate whether healthy young children are able to perform automated static perimetry reliably using the frequency-doubling technology (FDT) perimeter.
Design:
Prospective, observational case series.
Participants:
Forty healthy children aged 4 to 14 years.
Testing:
Subjects underwent, in 1 randomly chosen eye, 2 consecutive visual field (VF) tests using the C-20 full-threshold program of the commercially available FDT.
Main Outcome Measures:
Global measures included mean deviation (MD), pattern standard deviation (PSD), test duration and reliability indices, including fixation losses and false-positive and false-negative errors. Fixation losses are checked 6 times throughout the examination, rather than being continuously monitored. Two scoring systems, based on the total deviation probability plot, classified each VF as normal or abnormal.
Results:
All subjects completed the VF test. The better of 2 examinations (as determined by the MD score) was used for analysis. The average test duration was 4.9+/-0.7 minutes for the entire group. The mean MD and PSD were -0.78+/-4.9 and 6.7+/-6.2, respectively. A clear correlation to age was found for MD, PSD, abnormality of the VF, and test duration (all P<0.05). Of all VFs, 32.5% were unreliable, such that at younger than 8 years of age, 42.9% of the VFs were unreliable, compared with 23.1% for those older than 8 years. Younger than 8 years of age, 78.6% of VFs were abnormal, whereas for ages 8 years and older, 26.9% of VFs were abnormal.
Conclusions:
Frequency-doubling technology seems to be a clinically feasible VF method for evaluating young children older than approximately 8 years of age. The reliability indices, MD, test duration, and the reproducibility of the VF test were found to be highly correlated with age, in such a way that these parameters all improved with increasing age.
