Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 15, 2026
A Method to Quantify Visual Information Processing in Children Using Eye Tracking
Published on: July 9, 2016
Measured visual field extent varies with peripheral stimulus flicker rate in very young children
Suzanne M Delaney1, Velma Dobson, Kathleen M Mohan
1Department of Psychology, University of Arizona, 655 North Alvernon Way, Tucson, AZ 85711, USA. delaney@u.arizona.edu
Insights
Visual field extent in young children varies with stimulus flicker rate, with 10 Hz yielding the largest extent. Standardizing flicker rates, like 10 Hz, is crucial for accurate clinical assessments in pediatric vision testing.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Pediatric Vision Science
- Visual Psychophysics
Background:
- Assessing visual fields in very young children presents unique challenges.
- Understanding how stimulus parameters affect visual field measurements is critical for accurate diagnosis and monitoring.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of varying peripheral stimulus flicker rates on measured visual field extent in infants and young children.
- To compare visual field extents across different age groups and flicker rates.
Main Methods:
- Binocular visual field extent was measured using a static perimetry procedure.
- 120 children aged 11, 17, and 30 months, and 40 adults were tested.
- Stimuli were presented at four flicker rates: 1 Hz, 10 Hz, 20 Hz, and 40 Hz.
Main Results:
- Visual field extent in children significantly varied with stimulus flicker rate, unlike in adults.
- A 10-Hz flicker rate produced the largest measured visual field extent in children.
- Children's visual field extent was comparable to adults at 10 Hz but smaller at other tested flicker rates.
Conclusions:
- Stimulus parameter standardization, particularly flicker rate, is essential for reliable clinical visual field testing in children.
- Using a 10-Hz flicker rate may improve the consistency of longitudinal visual field assessments in young patients.
- This standardization helps prevent misinterpretations arising from interactions between age and potential disease-related changes.
Purpose:
The purpose of this article is to describe measured visual field extent in very young children in response to variation in peripheral stimulus flicker rate.
Methods:
Binocular visual field extent was measured using a black, double-arc perimeter and an LED static perimetry procedure in 120 11-month-old, 120 17-month-old, and 120 30-month-old children and 40 adults. Each subject was tested with one of four flicker rates: 1 Hz, 10 Hz, 20 Hz, or 40 Hz. An interpolated estimate of the eccentricity at which 50% of subjects detected the peripheral stimulus and the mean of the farthest eccentricity at which subjects detected the peripheral stimulus were calculated for each flicker rate for each age group.
Results:
In 11-, 17-, and 30-month-old children, but not in adults, measured visual field extent (eccentricity at which the stimulus was detected) varied significantly with rate of stimulus flicker. The largest measured visual field extent was produced by a 10-Hz stimulus and the smallest was produced by 1-Hz and 40-Hz stimuli. Measured visual field extent in children was similar to that of adults for 10-Hz flicker, but smaller than that of adults for 1-Hz, 20-Hz, and 40-Hz flicker.
Conclusions:
These results underscore the importance of standardizing stimulus parameters when developing tests for clinical assessment of visual fields in children. Furthermore, for longitudinal assessment of young patients, use of a 10-Hz flicker rate, in combination with the other parameters used in the present study, would help to avoid difficulties in interpretation that could arise from an interaction between age-related and disease-related changes that might occur if other stimulus flicker rates were used.
