Vision Screening Programmes: Collaborative work for developing evidence-based vision screening protocols.

This editorial highlights the scope of the topic that need to be examined further in the field of children’s vision screening. We hope that by making vision screening a special topic in SJOVS we can encourage collaboration between groups of researchers, clinicians and students and help in the development of evidence-based solutions to the current problems facing vision screening across the world. Of course, identifying eye and vision problems represents only the first stage in a screening process. It is important to mention that any screening programme requires several follow up steps to be successful. Good access to further examination for screening is required and affordable spectacles need to be provided. A mechanism of follow up is also important as, once dispensed, the spectacles need to be worn appropriately. Failure to address any of these issues will limit the benefits of a screening programme and innovative methods of addressing these issues are encouraged.

Kongsberg Vision Meeting Abstracts 2021

Kongsberg Vision Meeting was held at the University of South-Eastern Norway in Kongsberg, for the 13th time, on November 16–18, 2021. The meeting was organised as a three-day meeting with a clinical day, a research day and a lighting design day. Rigmor C. Baraas, Eilin Lundanes, Ann Elisabeth Ystenæs, Ellen Svarverud, Klaus Sjøhaug and Are Røysamb organised the three-day meeting. The theme this year was Speciality Contact Lenses and Architectural Lighting Design. Keynote speakers for the clinical optometry day and the research day were Eef van Der Worp, Nicola Logan, Fabrizio Zeri and Daddi Fadel. The keynote speakers for the lighting day were Sylvia Pont and Manuel Spitschan. The abstracts from invited and contributed talks on the different days are presented in the order they were given.

SOPTI Meeting Abstracts 2021

After more than a year of blockade due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it was finally possible to return to the events in the presence. The 26th National Conference of the Italian Optometric Association (SOPTI) was held in Bologna on October 10–11, 2021. The theme of the conference was “Good practice in Optometry and Contact Lenses”, with the accent on two topics: the optometric management of the patient in old age and the progression of myopia. Four keynote speakers were invited during the conference: Prof. Rigmor C. Baraas from the University of South-Eastern Norway in Kongsberg, Prof. David B. Elliot from the University of Bradford, Dr. Fabrizio Zeri from the University of Milano Bicocca and the IACLE President, Prof. Phil Morgan, from the University of Manchester. The abstracts from accepted posters and free papers are presented here.

Managing in early COVID-19: The Nigerian optometry experience

This study was designed to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices of Nigerian optometrists and optometry students with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic, while also assessing its impact of their daily personal and professional routines. The Google Forms suite was used to design an online struc- tured survey/questionnaire. This was sent to Nigerian optometrists and optometry students along with a message soliciting their voluntary participation. This survey took place between 10th April and 15th May 2020. The responses received were electronically transmitted to the authors and populated via Google suite software. Descriptive statistics and inferences were then derived from these data. A total of 399 valid responses were logged during this study. Of these, 183 (45.4%) respondents were optometry students from the eight optometry education departments in Nigeria. Optometric doctors made up 216 of the respondents. 86% of optometrists reported having cases of COVID-19 in their state. No optometrists reported suffering from the COVID-19 disease while one (0.5%) student had been infected with COVID-19. Twelve percent of student respondents felt educational facilities were adequate to cater for post COVID- 19 resumption, while 21.5% of students felt that the ongoing academic session should be restarted. The COVID-19 Pandemic has impacted greatly on service delivery among Nigerian optometrists and optometry education. Educational institutions must also adjust to current realities in order to be able to provide safe and adequate training when the academic section resumes or restarts.

Imaging the tarsal plate: A Mini-Review

Imaging the tarsal plate and the meibomian glands (MG) grants new opportunities for ophthalmic practitioners who work in the field of the ocular surface and dry eye across the globe. The secretory role of MG plays a fundamental part in protecting the moisture in front of the eye surface by creating an active shield made of meibum (lipid) which prevents tear evaporation and causes dry eye. Evidence from the most popular Dry Eye Workshop reports (2007 and 2016) demonstrate that MG dysfunction is the first cause of evaporative dry eye which is also the most common cause of dry eye and ocular surface discomfort. Fortunately, during the last years, a plethora of new devices for MG observation, diagnosis and follow-up have been made available in the market. These devices range from invasive to minimally invasive, high to low-tech and from being expensive to low-cost. The objective of this mini-review is to condense the latest evidence in MG imaging by providing a narrative overview on the most common technologies plus some other newer aspects which might guide clinicians and researchers in the field of the ocular surface and dry eye.

Normal saccades but decreased fixation stability in a population of children with dyslexia

Developmental dyslexia affects around 5-15% of the population and has a heterogeneous aetiology. Optometric disorders are more prevalent in dyslexic populations but the relationship be- tween eye movement control and dyslexia is not well established. In this study, we investigated whether children with dyslexia show saccadic or fixation deficits and whether these deficits are related to deficits in visual acuity and/or accommodation. Thirty-four children with and without dyslexia were recruited for the project. All participants had an optometric examination and performed a saccade and fixation experiment. We used two eye movement paradigms: the step and the gap task. Eye movements were recorded by an infrared eye-tracker and saccade and fixation parameters were analysed separately. Saccadic latencies, premature saccades, and directional errors were similar between children with dyslexia and typically developing children. In contrast, fixations were significantly less stable in the dyslexic group. Neither saccades nor fixations were associated with deficits in accommodation or visual acuity. Children with dyslexia showed no difficulties in saccadic performance, but their fixation stability was reduced compared to the control group. The reduced fixation stability can be explained by general deficits in the cognitive processes that underpin eye movement control, that have also been found in other neuro-developmental disorders.

Exogenous Factors Affecting Multifocal Electroretinogram: A mini review

Multifocal electroretinogram (mfERG) is an important diagnostic tool in the clinical evaluation of central electro-retinal function of the macula. To enhance the diagnostic values and to improve its accuracy and internal consistency, it is crucial to examine carefully the endogenous and exogenous factors that affect mfERG recordings and clinical interpretations. This mini review focuses on three aspects of exogenous factors including (1) physiological variations pertaining to age and gender; (2) systemic changes owing to oxygen, blood pressure and glucose levels; (3) individual variables due to refractive status, pupil size, luminance and viewing condition.

Referral in a routine Italian optometric examination: towards an evidence-based model.

Italian optometrists refract patients and prescribe optical appliances. The routine optometric examination that is currently conducted in Italy, however, does not include a comprehensive ocular health assessment. Like many other countries, in Italy ophthalmologists are solely responsible for the diagnosis and treatment of ocular pathologies, yet, the care an optometrist provides must be done with the aim of promoting the general and ocular health of patients seen in practice. Such scope has to be pursued using a close collaboration with ophthalmologists, ultimately facilitating the earliest medical diagnosis and minimisation of visual impairment. Referral represents the basis of optometrist-ophthalmologist collaboration, yet, no guidance is available to Italian optometrists indicating when referral is warranted. The purpose of this study was to identify the circumstances deserving a referral in a routine Italian optometric examination in adults, ultimately constituting preliminary evidence-based indications of a referral model oriented to enhance the ocular and general health of patients. A literature review was conducted on Pubmed and the Cochrane Library, mainly targeting high quality secondary literature such as systematic reviews, meta-analysis and clinical guidelines. Several reasons for referral were identified. Further, while a wide range of anomalies of the visual system are likely to be discovered by the Italian optometric examination, up to 20% of patients could suffer an underlying condition undetected by the current assessment. This results in the need to refer seemingly healthy patients if they have not attended routine ophthalmological examinations within optimal time frames. In Italy, and countries with similar settings, the referral is an essential instrument that optometrists must largely use to ensure early diagnosis of ocular conditions by ophthalmologists and minimisation of avoidable visual impairment.