Pupillary dynamics and accommodative response in mild traumatic brain injury

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Ophthalmology
• Trauma Research

Background:

• Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) can lead to a range of neurological and visual deficits.
• Understanding the specific impact on pupillary dynamics and accommodation is crucial for diagnosis and management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantitatively assess pupillary light reflex dynamics and accommodative responses in individuals with mTBI.
• To compare these visual parameters between mTBI patients and age-matched healthy controls.

Main Methods:

• A prospective comparative study involving 63 mTBI patients and 90 controls (aged 18-35).
• Comprehensive neuro-optometric assessment including pupillary dynamics and accommodation measurements.
• Utilized NeurOptics® pupillary light reflex™-3000 and Grand-Seiko WAM-5500 devices.

Main Results:

• mTBI patients showed significantly reduced pupillary constriction percentage and velocity compared to controls (P < 0.001).
• Recovery time (T75) for pupillary diameter was significantly longer in the mTBI group (P < 0.001).
• Accommodative response was significantly diminished in individuals with mTBI (P < 0.001).

Conclusions:

• Pupillary constriction dynamics and accommodative response are significantly impaired following mTBI.
• These objective neuro-optometric findings provide insights into visual symptoms experienced by mTBI patients.
• The study underscores the importance of visual assessments in the post-mTBI evaluation.