Comparison of the automated vision screening test to the Snellen test

The comparison of an automatic vision screening machine using the Landolt rings and the usual Snellen Chart was carried out among 123 second grade and 149 fifth grade students in an elementary school in Jerusalem. The sensitivity of the test for a cut-off point of greater than or equal to 6/12 according to the Snellen test was 41.7% (CI = 16.5-71.4) and the specificity was 86.5% (CI 78.1-92.2) for second graders. For fifth graders the values were 50.0% (CI = 20.1-79.9) and 90.6% (CI 83.7-94.8) respectively. Diagnosis by a specialist decreased the number of 'false negatives' and confirmed the pathological cases. The automatic test was well accepted by the children. Though more time is needed for assessment using the automatic test, its advantage is that no professional staff are required.