An Observational Cross-Sectional Study of Virtual Reality Mobility Assessment of Functional Vision in Retinal Disease

National Eye Institute

Investigators

Abstract

We started by recruiting ten photosensitive participants (achromats (N=8) and people with albinism (N=2)). Based on the photosensitivity achromats and albinism patients normally describe, we hypothesized that photosensitive patients would do better at navigating the maze at lower light levels and then progressively have more trouble as light levels increased. However, while some did take longer to navigate the maze, overall participants were all able to navigate the maze relatively well even at the highest light level that the Oculus goggles produce. The Oculus goggles which are intended for gaming were not designed to produce high light levels. Because some gaming monitors can produce high light levels, we trialed the idea of having the participants sit close to a large, curved gaming monitor. However, in trials of healthy volunteers, we realized that the effect of being immersed in the maze is lost. As a result, we changed our focus to investigating mobility in patients with retinitis pigmentosa under dark adapted conditions. To date we have recruited 12 RP patients. As expected, RP patients can navigate the maze under photopic conditions (training phase) but then have difficulty under dark adapted conditions. We have recruited RP patients with different levels of severity (based on visual fields, acuity etc). While some participants have been able to navigate the VR maze under relatively dim light levels others have required much higher light levels (up to 2000 times higher). Encouragingly RP patient have provided feedback that the difficulty they have in navigating the VR maze reflects their challenges with mobility in their lives. We will continue to recruit and test RP patients