Dichoptic video game shows promise for improving stereoacuity

Issue: May 10, 2018

Vicki M. Chen

WASHINGTON — Improvement in stereoacuity was clinically and statistically significant in amblyopic children after use of a novel dichoptic video game, a speaker here said.

“The American Board of Ophthalmology recommends checking stereoacuity routinely during every strabismus visit because a decline in stereoacuity might suggest worsening disease,” Vicki M. Chen, MD, said at the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus meeting. “We all agree that stereoacuity is an important function; the next question becomes, can we restore that function, and if so, how?”

Chen and colleagues have analyzed 27 children between 4 and 15 years of age for change in stereoacuity at 4 weeks after watching 40 minutes of dichoptic cartoon videos daily for 4 weeks.

In the video game, a green lens filters green images and provides a strongly contrasted image of Clifford the Big Red Dog to the amblyopic eye, while a red lens filters out Clifford to the sound eye.

“This decreased contrast stimulation to the sound eye provides similar visual input from both eyes, thus stimulating the binocular cells,” Chen said.

Stereoacuity improved two or more levels in 63% of subjects, which was clinically significant, and the mean gain was 0.569 arc seconds, which was highly statistically significant (P = .001), she said.

Compliance was good, with 77% of children reported as having viewed 80% of the prescribed hours.

“I do think that this video shows promise,” Chen said, adding that further studies are planned. – by Patricia Nale, ELS

Reference:

Chen VM. Novel dichoptic iPad cartoon videos improve stereoacuity and central fusion in treated and untreated amblyopes. Presented at: American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus meeting; March 18-22, 2018; Washington.

Disclosure: Chen reports she holds intellectual property rights with patent pending on the technology.