Suchergebnisse

The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated government-imposed restrictions on social interactions and travel. For many, the guidance has led to new ways of working, most notably a shift towards working remotely. While eye care practitioners (ECPs) may continue to provide urgent or emergency eye care, in many cases the travel restrictions present a unique challenge by preventing conventional face-to-face examination. Telephone triage provides a useful starting point for establishing at-risk and emergency patients; but patient examination is central to contact lens patient care. The indeterminate period over which conventional practice will be suspended, and the risk that resumption of 'normal' practice could be impeded by a potential secondary peak in COVID-19 cases, hastens the need for practitioners to adapt their delivery of eyecare. Specifically, it is prudent to reflect upon supportive evidence for more comprehensive approaches to teleoptometry in contact lens practice. Smartphone based ocular imaging is an area which has seen considerable growth, particularly for imaging the posterior eye. Smartphone imaging of the anterior eye requires additional specialised instrumentation unlikely to be available to patients at home. Further, there is only limited evidence for self-administered image capture. In general, digital photographs, are useful for detection of gross anterior eye changes, but subtle changes are less discernible. For the assessment of visual acuity, many electronic test charts have been validated for use by practitioners. Research into self-administered visual acuity measures remains limited. The absence of a comprehensive evidence base for teleoptometry limits ECPs, particularly during this pandemic. Knowledge gaps ought to be addressed to facilitate development of optometry specific evidence-based guidance for telecare. In particular, advances in ocular self-imaging could help move this field forwards.

The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated government-imposed restrictions on social interactions and travel. For many, the guidance has led to new ways of working, most notably a shift towards working remotely. While eye care practitioners (ECPs) may continue to provide urgent or emergency eye care, in many cases the travel restrictions present a unique challenge by preventing conventional face-to-face examination. Telephone triage provides a useful starting point for establishing at-risk and emergency patients; but patient examination is central to contact lens patient care. The indeterminate period over which conventional practice will be suspended, and the risk that resumption of 'normal' practice could be impeded by a potential secondary peak in COVID-19 cases, hastens the need for practitioners to adapt their delivery of eyecare. Specifically, it is prudent to reflect upon supportive evidence for more comprehensive approaches to teleoptometry in contact lens practice. Smartphone based ocular imaging is an area which has seen considerable growth, particularly for imaging the posterior eye. Smartphone imaging of the anterior eye requires additional specialised instrumentation unlikely to be available to patients at home. Further, there is only limited evidence for self-administered image capture. In general, digital photographs, are useful for detection of gross anterior eye changes, but subtle changes are less discernible. For the assessment of visual acuity, many electronic test charts have been validated for use by practitioners. Research into self-administered visual acuity measures remains limited. The absence of a comprehensive evidence base for teleoptometry limits ECPs, particularly during this pandemic. Knowledge gaps ought to be addressed to facilitate development of optometry specific evidence-based guidance for telecare. In particular, advances in ocular self-imaging could help move this field forwards.

Objective: Low-vision quality-of-life (LVQOL) questionnaire was recently translated to Persian. Its model fit and construct validity were assessed by exploratory and confirmatory analysis for adults with visual impairment, before. In this study, we aimed to test the reliability of the Persian LVQOL questionnaire based on Rasch analysis. Methods: Overall, 100 low-vision patients and 100 demographic statue-matched control subjects were participated for evaluating reliability aspects. All the participants were asked to complete the Persian LVQOL questionnaire. The low-vision group was asked to fill out the LVQOL 3 months after rehabilitation to determine how rehabilitation changed the quality of life. Rasch analyses of the survey items were conducted using WINSTEPS. Results: All items fitted the Rasch model. Point-measure correlations values varied from .13 to .70, providing a preliminary indication of adequate construct validity. All factor loadings found more than .4. infit values for all other participants were in the acceptable range. All items obtained infit and outfit MSQ values of < 2.0. Patients' abilities relative to the item difficulty were analyzed. Item difficulty was estimated and item characteristic curves were included. Sufficient unidimensionality, hierarchical order, and equal interval scaring were obtained. Conclusion: The Persian LVQOL questionnaire was reliable enough and it will be valuable in both clinical practice and research.

Most of the vision quality assessment questionnaires are in English. None of the low-vision-related quality-of-life questionnaires have been translated or developed in Persian. It will help Persian optometrists and ophthalmologists to assess improvement of visual function and quality of life during their low-vision rehabilitation programs. In this study, we aimed to translate the low-vision quality-of-life (LVQOL) questionnaire in Persian language and apply exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to assess the construct validity and fit model. Translation and cultural adjustment of the English language LVQOL questionnaire to Persian was undertaken. Overall, 100 low-vision patients were participated to validate and model the assessment questionnaire by both EFA and CFA methods. Complementary EFA and CFA results provide detailed information about item and scale performance of the Persian LVQOL. EFA showed Items 15, 16, and 21 which had factor loadings lower than 0.3. The modified model had the comparative fit index (CFI) and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) of 0.89 and 0.06, respectively. The translation, adjustment, and fit analysis of the LVQOL questionnaire into Persian were successful and it will be valuable in both clinical practice and research.

The International Myopia Institute's (IMI) mission is to advance research, education, and management of myopia to decrease future vision impairment and blindness associated with increasing myopia. Its approach is to bring together scientists, clinicians, policymakers, government members, and educators into the field of myopia to stimulate collaboration and sharing of knowledge. The latest reports are on pathologic myopia, the impact of myopia, risk factors for myopia, accommodation and binocular vision in myopia development and progression, and the prevention of myopia and its progression. Together with the digest updating the 2019 International Myopia Institute white papers using the research published in the last 18 months, these evidence-based consensus white papers help to clarify the imperative for myopia control and the role of environmental modification initiatives, informing an evidence-based clinical approach. This guidance includes who to treat and when to start or stop treatment, and the advantages and limitations of different management approaches.

The International Myopia Institute's (IMI) mission is to advance research, education, and management of myopia to decrease future vision impairment and blindness associated with increasing myopia. Its approach is to bring together scientists, clinicians, policymakers, government members, and educators into the field of myopia to stimulate collaboration and sharing of knowledge. The latest reports are on pathologic myopia, the impact of myopia, risk factors for myopia, accommodation and binocular vision in myopia development and progression, and the prevention of myopia and its progression. Together with the digest updating the 2019 International Myopia Institute white papers using the research published in the last 18 months, these evidence-based consensus white papers help to clarify the imperative for myopia control and the role of environmental modification initiatives, informing an evidence-based clinical approach. This guidance includes who to treat and when to start or stop treatment, and the advantages and limitations of different management approaches.