Auckland university’s School of Optometry and Vision Science (SOVS) is recruiting strabismus patients to participate in a study to help develop an automated and objective computer-based method to measure eye alignment.

“We hope that the computer-based system will be able to measure eye alignment at a similar level of accuracy as clinical tests, and that it will be able to do this quickly and automatically,” said research fellow Dr Tina Gao who is coordinating the study. “This type of system may be useful for assessing strabismus or other eye movement problems in the clinic, for example when following up patients across multiple visits or in vision screening settings where clinical expertise is not always available.”

SOVS is looking to recruit three groups of participants for the study, which aims to combine 3D display systems and eye-tracking technology:

• Adults (aged 18-50) with long-standing childhood strabismus who are not planning to have eye muscle surgery in the next few months.
• Children (6-17) with strabismus who are not planning to have eye muscle surgery.
• Adults (18-50) with childhood strabismus who are planning to have eye muscle surgery.

All of the participants need to have healthy eyes, apart from the strabismus and related conditions like amblyopia. Previous eye muscle surgeries are accepted as long as it has been at least three months since the surgery.

Strabismus affects about one in 20 children.

Referrals or queries can be directed to Dr Gao at t.gao@auckland.ac.nz or 09 923 2955.