Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 15, 2025
Author Spotlight: An Automated Method for Assessing Visual Acuity in Infants and Toddlers Using an Eye-Tracking System
Published on: March 17, 2023
CVI questionnaires for preschool children: Towards early screening of visual difficulties in daily life
Marinke J Hokken1,2,3, Christiaan J A Geldof2, Sjoerd M Stuit3
1Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Insights
Parental input is key for identifying Cerebral Visual Impairment (CVI) in young children. A new screening list helps detect CVI in preschoolers, addressing a gap in current tools for this age group.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Pediatrics
- Developmental Neuroscience
Background:
- Cerebral Visual Impairment (CVI) presents diverse visual deficits challenging to detect in young children.
- Existing screening tools for CVI are often designed for older children (6+ years).
- Parental observations are crucial for early CVI identification and assessment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the manifestation of CVI in the daily lives of preschool-aged children.
- To develop a screening list specifically for CVI in preschoolers.
Main Methods:
- 118 parents of children aged 2-5 years (with CVI, at risk of CVI, and neurotypical) completed questionnaires.
- The Parental Questionnaire for Cerebral Visual Impairment (PQCVI) and a new Preschool Visio-CVI-Inventory (V-CVI-I) were used.
- Parent-reported difficulties were compared across groups, with items evaluated for discriminability, relevance, and exclusivity.
Main Results:
- Parents of children with CVI reported significantly more visual difficulties, especially in visual attention and visuomotor processing.
- The Preschool V-CVI-I demonstrated excellent internal consistency (α = .91) and superior discriminative ability compared to the PQCVI.
- Daily visual deficits in preschool CVI are observable and similar to those in older children.
Conclusions:
- Daily visual deficits are evident in preschool children with CVI.
- A new 10-item Preschool CVI Screening List can aid early recognition and diagnosis.
- The findings support the need for age-appropriate CVI screening tools for early intervention.
Abstract:
Cerebral Visual Impairment (CVI) is associated with a wide range of visual deficits that can be difficult to identify in young children. Parental observations are essential for the early screening and diagnostic assessment of CVI. However, most existing CVI (screening) questionnaires are designed for children aged 6 years and older. This study aimed to (1) explore how CVI manifests in the daily lives of preschool children and (2) develop a preschool CVI screening list. In total, 118 parents of children aged 2-5 years with CVI (n = 30), at risk of CVI (n = 22), and neurotypical children (n = 66) completed two questionnaires: the Parental Questionnaire for Cerebral Visual Impairment (PQCVI) and a new Preschool version of the Visio-CVI-Inventory (V-CVI-I). Parent-reported difficulties were compared across groups at questionnaire, category, and item level. Items were evaluated on three criteria: (1) Discriminability (A' ≥ .75, CVI vs. neurotypical), (2) Relevance (≥ 25% of the CVI-group showing difficulties), (3) Exclusivity (≤10% the neurotypical group showing difficulties). Parents of children with CVI reported significantly more daily visual difficulties, particularly in global and local visual selective attention and visuomotor processing. The Preschool V-CVI-I showed excellent internal consistency (a = .91) and stronger discriminative ability than the PQCVI. Our results indicate that daily visual deficits are already observable in preschool children with CVI and resemble the difficulties previously reported in older children with CVI. A new 10-item Preschool CVI Screening List is proposed to support early recognition and referral for further diagnostics.
