Tablet-based multi-stimulus perimetry for glaucoma screening

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Medical Technology
• Diagnostic Tools

Background:

• Glaucoma is a leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide.
• Early detection of glaucomatous visual field (VF) defects is crucial for timely intervention.
• Standard automated perimetry can be time-consuming and requires specialized equipment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the diagnostic performance of the Multi-Stimulus Vision Tester for a single eye (MVT-s).
• To assess the MVT-s's ability to detect glaucomatous VF defects.
• To determine the test-retest reproducibility and examination time of the MVT-s.

Main Methods:

• A tablet-based perimetry tool, MVT-s, was tested on 42 eyes with glaucoma (early, moderate, advanced) and 39 normal eyes.
• Participants underwent MVT-s testing and standard automated perimetry (SAP) using the imo perimeter.
• MVT-s utilized a multipoint stimulation paradigm with simultaneous presentation of up to three flickering stimuli.

Main Results:

• Abnormal points detected by MVT-s significantly increased with glaucoma severity (p < 0.001) and correlated with mean deviation (MD) (ρ = -0.84).
• The MVT-s demonstrated high diagnostic accuracy with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.93.
• Excellent test-retest reproducibility was observed (Intraclass Correlation Coefficient [ICC] = 0.95 overall).

Conclusions:

• The MVT-s shows high diagnostic accuracy and good reproducibility for detecting glaucomatous VF defects.
• Its relatively short examination time suggests potential as a practical screening and complementary assessment tool.
• The MVT-s may enhance glaucoma care by providing an accessible and efficient visual field testing option.