Orientation Discrimination Threshold Detection for Macular Disease
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for screening and monitoring macular degenerative diseases are inadequate, particularly in determining orientation discrimination thresholds for early detection and progression, and existing home-monitoring tests are insensitive and costly.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that displays pairs of targets with parallel and non-parallel lines to subjects, calculating orientation discrimination thresholds, and correlating increases in these thresholds with a risk for retinal-associated eye diseases, utilizing personal electronic devices for home monitoring and communication networks for real-time data transmission.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the Amsler grid is used for home monitoring, then patients can monitor at home, but the test is insensitive and yields false negatives
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the measurement parameter from subjective pattern recognition (Amsler grid) to objective orientation discrimination threshold measurement. By presenting parallel and non-parallel line patterns and measuring the minimum angular separation patients can detect, the system obtains quantifiable, sensitive data that correlates with macular health status, resolving the insensitivity problem while maintaining home monitoring capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the subjective visual assessment mechanism of the Amsler grid with an objective psychophysical measurement system. Instead of relying on patient interpretation of grid distortion, the system uses computer-presented line patterns with precisely controlled angular separations and automated threshold calculation, eliminating subjective bias while preserving accessibility
2Measurement precision
If orientation discrimination testing is implemented, then early detection sensitivity improves, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent designs the orientation discrimination test to run on universally available personal electronic devices (smartphones, tablets, computers) rather than requiring specialized medical equipment. The test software can be distributed as a mobile application, making the sophisticated measurement capability accessible to patients at home without increasing device complexity or cost
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables patients to perform the orientation discrimination test themselves at home without requiring ophthalmologist or technician administration. The automated software guides patients through the test, automatically presents stimuli, records responses, and calculates thresholds, eliminating the need for complex clinical infrastructure while maintaining high measurement precision
3Reliability
If frequent monitoring is performed to detect progression, then treatment timing is optimized, but patient burden and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The orientation discrimination test is designed as a self-administered home test that patients can complete independently in a few minutes. By eliminating the need for clinic visits and professional administration, patients can perform monitoring frequently without burden, enabling timely detection of disease progression while minimizing time and resource investment
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements periodic home monitoring where patients perform orientation discrimination tests at scheduled intervals (e.g., weekly or monthly). This periodic self-monitoring provides continuous data on disease progression, allowing optimization of treatment timing through frequent assessment without the burden of continuous clinic visits
Data Source
AI summary
Provided herein are methods and systems to screen for subjects at risk for retinal-associated eye diseases or to monitor the progression/regression thereof. Generally, the method comprises simultaneously or sequentially displaying to a potentially at-risk individual targets of parallel and nonparallel lines, obtaining an orientation discrimination threshold based on the subject's selections and correlating an increase in the threshold compared to that of a normal control or to a previous threshold measured for the subject as indicative of risk for a retinal-associated eye disease or a progression of the eye disease. Also provided are program storage devices and computer program products effective to store instructions or source code to perform the methods.