Shortened test effectively gauges ability to handle everyday visual tasks

A full-length testing instrument and an abbreviated testing instrument proved similarly reliable in assessing the ability to perform vision-related daily activities, according to a study.

“As such, [the compressed test] may provide a clinically useful method of evaluating the worsening effects of illness and the benefits of treatments that affect visual loss on the ability to perform visually related activities,” the study authors said.

The study included 99 patients with glaucoma and 21 healthy controls. All patients underwent slit lamp examination, optic nerve assessment, IOP measurement, and monocular and binocular visual acuity and visual field testing. Contrast sensitivity and stereopsis were also examined.

Patients also underwent the National Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire (NEI-VFQ-25) and the Assessment of Ability Related to Vision (AARV), a nine-item performance-based assessment of the ability to perform daily activities.

All combinations of two, three or four items of the full AARV test were analyzed; scores were compared with full AARV scores and with clinical measures.

Study results showed that the average time required to complete the full AARV test was 59.8 minutes. The four-item compressed AARV test (CAARV) was completed in an average of 14.2 minutes.

The best four-item CAARV, which included recognizing facial expressions, detecting motion, identifying street signs and locating objects, correlated strongly with the full AARV (P < .001). A three-item CAARV, which included detecting motion, identifying street signs and locating objects, also correlated with the full AARV (P < .001). CAARV scores correlated with NEI-VFQ-25 scores.

Further longitudinal study is warranted, the authors said.

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Source:

Br J Ophthalmol. 2012;96(5):735-741.