Face Recognition Characteristics in Patients with Age-Related Macular Degeneration Determined Using a Virtual Reality...

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Neuroscience
• Human-Computer Interaction

Background:

• Face recognition is a significant challenge for individuals with age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
• Current assessment methods may not fully capture the complexities of visual perception deficits in AMD.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate face recognition abilities in AMD patients using a novel virtual reality (VR) system with integrated eye tracking.
• To evaluate the efficacy of VR and eye tracking as tools for studying visual perception in real-world scenarios.

Main Methods:

• 18 AMD patients and 19 healthy controls completed the IC FACES test on a VR headset with eye tracking.
• Analysis included recognition accuracy, time, and fixation patterns.
• Dementia screening and ocular imaging were also performed.

Main Results:

• AMD patients exhibited significantly lower face recognition accuracy (42% vs. 92%) and longer recognition times (4.0s vs. 2.0s) compared to controls.
• Poorer visual acuity correlated with worse recognition performance.
• Eye-tracking revealed typical fixation patterns within the eyes-nose-mouth triangle in both groups.

Conclusions:

• A VR headset with eye tracking is a viable tool for assessing visual perception in AMD.
• This technology offers a promising approach for designing future clinical studies on visual processing disorders.