Objective: The primary goal of this study was to determine the effect of visual impairment (VI) on the quality of life (QoL) in children aged 3-7 years. Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study involving 138 parents or caregivers of children aged 3-7 years from Pediatric Ophthalmology and General Ophthalmology Clinics of a tertiary government hospital. The Filipino version of the Children’s Visual Function Questionnaire (CVFQ3plus), an instrument that measures the impact of visual impairment on the QoL of children aged 3-7 years and their families, was used. It has 6 subscales: general health, general vision, competence, personality, family impact, and treatment. T-test was used to compare the total index QoL score and subscale scores between children with VI (n=69) and the control group (n=69). The multivariate regression model based on the total index QoL score in children with VI was used to assess the effect of other demographic factors. Results: Children with VI had significantly lower total index QoL score (p=0.02), general vision (p=0.04), competence (p=0.00), and personality (p=0.02) subscale scores than the control group. The visual acuity of children with VI had a significant effect on the total index QoL score (p=0.04). Demographic factors like patient’s age and sex, and parental age, sex and educational attainment had no effect on total index QoL score. Conclusion Visual impairment has a negative effect on the quality of life of Filipino children aged 3-7 years as shown by the use of the CVFQ3plus.
Vision Disorders ; Quality of Life ; Vision, Low

The standard vision test using visual acuity is not always an accurate indicator of functional visual loss. The contrast sensitivity was measured in low vision patients. the contrast sensitivity of low vision patients showed a substantila decrease in all spatial frequencies(P<0.001). Of the 34 patients, the preferred eye was the eye with better peak sensitivity in 31 patients(91%) while the perferred eye was the eye with better visual acuity in 24 patients(71%). There were no characteristics of contrast sensitivity according to the diagnosis. The contributions of the contrast sensitivity function to the low vision care are evaluated.
Contrast Sensitivity* ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Vision Tests ; Vision, Low* ; Visual Acuity

To obtain adequate information of illumination and lens types for visual acuity test of low vision patient, the relation between various illumination and vision was evaluated. Visual acuity for near and effective lens types were examined. Among the 28 patients (of 36 eyes), intensities of illumination were set at 200, 500, 1000 and 2000lux and the lenses of biconvex, aspheric and aplanatic were tested. The best visible range of illumination for the low vision patients was 500-1000lux, with lower power diopter for the same visual acuity and with aspherin and aplantic lenses. Results attained by our study may be applied for appropriate condition of illumiation and type of lens in the low vision care.
Humans ; Lighting* ; Vision, Low ; Visual Acuity*

Ideal low vision devices used for reading should have a large clear field of view.To determine the usefulness of Aspheric Doublet Lens, we compared visual field, image clarity and reading speed of aids in 100 patients who were prescribed with Aspheric doublet lens, Telemicroscope with plus cap and Hand held magnifier.Aspheric doublet lens was prescribed most commonly.Used lens of optical aids was aspheric doublet lens, aplantic lens, biconvex lens and aspheric lens.Visual field and image clarity of Aspheric doublet lens were wider and clearer than those of other devices.Reading speed of each aid after prescription was improved significantly than before prescription (P=0.01).Reading speed of Aspheric doublet lens was more improved than that of other devices.Therefore Aspheric doublet lens might be useful as reading aids to low vision patients.
Hand ; Humans ; Prescriptions ; Vision, Low ; Visual Fields

One-hundred patients with low vison caused by various ophthalmic pathologies were evaluated retrospectively. Ophtic atrophy was the most common etiology for low vision. For the low vision patients, hand-help magnifiers, stand magnifiers, telecopes and spectacle-mounted magnifiers were used as optical low vision aid(LVA)s. Typoscopes, visors, absorptive lenses, reading stands were used as non-optical LVAs. Closed circuit television was used as an electrical LVA. Majority of patients(82%) benefited from being prescribed low vision aids Therefore, it was suggested that all patients having low vision should receive a low vision assessment.
Atrophy ; Humans ; Pathology ; Retrospective Studies ; Television ; Vision, Low*

Visual conversion reaction is characterized by fluctuating visual acuity and tubular fields in the absence of any organic lesion. It is thought that the environmental and psychological factors contribute to the onset of symptom. Twenty-two cases of visual conversion reactions were evaluated clinically and the results were as follows. 1. Visual conversion reaction is more frequent in females and children and low vision is almost always affected bilaterally. 2. Sixteen cases(72.7%) showed tubular and constricted fields inspite of normal CT and electrophysiologic responses. 3. Of the cases, 86.4%(19/22) had improved their reduced visual acuity to over 0.8 after treatment with suggestion, placebo, plano lenses and some kind of psychotheraphy.
Child ; Conversion Disorder* ; Female ; Humans ; Psychology ; Vision, Low ; Visual Acuity

PURPOSE: To develop a new electronic low vision aid and to evaluate its efficacy. METHODS: An electronic low vision aid which can magnify images and project them onto the screen of a television, desktop computer or notebook computer was developed and applied to low vision patients. RESULTS: This electronic low vision aid is not hard on the wrist and has convenient horizontal movement. So it can be used for long periods of time in reading. It can also be easily applied to the television or computer. Thirty patients in the low vision clinic at our hospital agreed about the convenience and economic efficiency of this low vision aid compared to imported products. CONCLUSIONS: Because of the increasing number of low vision patients in our country, the development of a low vision aid will improve their quality of life.
Animals ; Humans ; Mice* ; Quality of Life ; Television ; Vision, Low* ; Wrist

It is important to detect binocular suppression of pediatric strabismic patients, especially in accommodative esotropes and intermittent exotropes. However, it may take a long time and false results may be obtained in young children. In order to examine binocular suppression, we selected 103 accommodative esotropes with binocular suppression. Vectograph test, Worth 4 dot test, and 4 prism base-out test were performed at distance, and Worth 4 dot test, TNO test, and Bagolini test at near. Titmus fly test and Randot stereotest were administerd to know the relationship between stereoacuity and suppression. In detecting binocular suppression, the true rate of vectogram was 95%, which was the highest result of all tests and 4 prism base-out test was the next with 88% of the true rate. The stereoacuity was increased in proportional to the absence of suppression. The vectographic porject test was the easiest and the most accurate test to identify normal fusion or binocular suppression at distance in young strabismic children. The accuracy will be increased in the combination with 4 prism base-out test. Therefore the vectograph also can be used in the screening of small amount of deviation, monocular amblyopia and low vision in kindergarten and elementary school.
Amblyopia ; Child ; Diptera ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Telescopes* ; Vision, Low

We evaluated the efficacy of the optical and non-optical low vision aids on the basis of our 31 low vision patients, whose visual acuities were not corrected with the conventional glasses nor operations. Out results were following that the improved visual acuities by the low vision aids were stastically significant(p<0.01, paired t-test), and meet their needs. We think the optical and non-optical low vision aids are required to rehabilitate the visually impaired patients.
Eyeglasses ; Glass ; Humans ; Rehabilitation* ; Vision, Low* ; Visual Acuity

PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical results of the auto-focusing low vision device (EYE FINE) in low vision patients. METHODS: We assessed the clinical effect after prescription of the device in 21 patients who visited the low vision clinic from July 2004 to January 2005. We examined visual acuity and contrast sensitivity before and after prescription. RESULTS: Mean distant visual acuity increased from 1.00+/-0.30 LogMAR to 0.69+/-0.34 LogMAR and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.01). Mean near visual acuity increased from 0.89+/-0.25 LogMAR to 0.71+/-0.30 LogMAR (P<0.01). And mean contrast sensitivities at spatial frequencies of 1.5, 3, 6, 12 and 18 cycles per degree (cpd) increased from 7.9+/-4.5, 10.8+/-7.4, 10.5+/-9.6, 3.9+/-3.8 and 2.0+/-2.7 to 10.5+/-8.0, 15.1+/-10.6, 16.3+/-13.6, 6.5+/-7.3 and 2.5+/-3.0, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: EYE FINE offers the advantage of auto-focusing according to working distance.
Contrast Sensitivity ; Humans ; Prescriptions ; Vision, Low* ; Visual Acuity