Predicting visual resolution from detection thresholds

Visual acuity is one of the most frequent health measures and is central to vision assessment in schools, industry, aviation, drivers' licensing, and ocular health examinations. There is a need for a rapid, simple, and interpretation-free measure of visual acuity which is amenable to automated and objective assessment. This study shows that a rapid (15 s) and simple contrast threshold measure for a 5 min arc spot correlates highly (r = 0.75) with letter acuity in 360 clinic patients. Assessments by optometrist and technician correlated highly (r = 0.88) as did repeated measures by the same examiner (r = 0.85). The instrumentation appears to be well suited for rapid, automated, and interpretation-free assessment of visual acuity and for visual acuity screening.