Comparing sports vision among three groups of soft tennis adolescent athletes: Normal vision, refractive errors with and without correction

The impact of patient-reported visual disturbance on dynamic visual acuity in myopic patients after corneal refractive surgery

Purpose

To investigate the impact of patient-reported visual disturbance on dynamic visual acuity in myopic patients after corneal refractive surgery.

Methods

This is a prospective nonrandomized study. Adult myopic patients receiving bilateral laser-assisted sub-epithelial keratomileusis (LASEK), femtosecond laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (FS-LASIK), or small incision lenticule extraction (SMILE) with Plano target were included. Eight types of patient-reported visual disturbance were evaluated regarding frequency, severity and bothersome and dynamic visual acuity (DVA) of 40 and 80 degrees per second (dps) was measured postoperatively at 3 months.

Results

The study enrolled 95 patients with an average age of 27.6 ± 6.4 years. The most frequently reported visual disturbance was the fluctuation in vision (70.5%), followed by glare (66.3%) and halo (57.4%). Postoperative DVA at 80 dps was significantly associated with the total score of haloes (p = 0.038) and difficulty in judging distance (p = 0.046). Significant worse postoperative DVA at 40 dps was observed in patients with haloes than those without (p = 0.024). The DVA at 80 dps for patients without haloes or difficulty in judging distance was significantly better than that with the symptoms (haloes, p = 0.047; difficulty in judging distance, p = 0.029). Subgroup analysis by surgical procedures demonstrated that the significant difference in DVA between patients with and without visual disturbance was only observed in patients receiving FS-LASIK.

Conclusion

Postoperatively, myopic patients undergoing corneal refractive surgery with haloes or difficulty in judging distance have significantly worse low and high-speed DVA than those without the symptoms. The present study provided the basis for postoperative guidance in daily tasks involving dynamic vision when patients have visual disturbances.

Stereopsis and Response Times between Collegiate Table Tennis Athletes and Non-Athletes

Table tennis athletes and non-athletes potentially differ in stereopsis and eye–hand response times (RT), but whether stereopsis correlates with response time has scarcely been discussed. We aimed to compare stereopsis and RT between collegiate table tennis athletes and non-athletes and to examine the correlation between stereopsis and RT. From December 2016 to October 2019, table tennis athletes (n = 80) and non-athletes (n = 56) were recruited. Stereopsis was measured in four modes (A25, A50, R25, R50: approaching and receding directions at 25 mm/s or 50 mm/s). RT was measured with simple and choice tasks at zero, shoulder, and random distance. For stereopsis, the judged deviations were smaller during the approaching phases. Men had smaller A25 than women (p =0.012), whereas table tennis athletes showed smaller R25 and A50 than non-athletes (p = 0.03, 0.01, respectively). RT increased from simple to choice conditions and from zero to random, followed by shoulder distance. Men were significantly faster than women in choice tasks (p < 0.01). Table tennis athletes performed better in RT than the non-athletes (p < 0.05). No correlation was observed between stereopsis and RT (r = −0.01 to 0.12). In conclusion, athletes from table tennis sports showed better stereopsis and RT than non-athletes. Men had better stereopsis and RT than women. There was no correlation between stereopsis and RT.

A novel standardized test system to evaluate dynamic visual acuity post trifocal or monofocal intraocular lens implantation: a multicenter study

OBJECTIVES

To compare the dynamic visual acuity (DVA) following implantation of trifocal with monofocal intraocular lenses (IOL) and using a novel test system.

METHODS

The present research was a retrospective, multicenter clinical study. Two hundred and ten eyes of 149 patients that underwent cataract phacoemulsification and IOL implantation were enrolled. One hundred and ten eyes of patients received trifocal (AT LISA tri839MP, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Germany) and 100 eyes received monofocal (Tecnis ZCB00, Abbott, United States) lenses and were evaluated 3 months after implantation. Outcome measures included monocular uncorrected distance (UDVA), intermediate (UIVA) and near (UNVA) visual acuity and best corrected distance visual acuity (BCDVA; logMAR units); contrast sensitivity under photopic, mesopic, with glare conditions; and dynamic visual acuity using a self-developed system.

RESULTS

There was no statistically significant difference in baseline characteristics between groups. Monocular UDVA, UIVA, and UNVA were significantly better (all p < 0.001) in the trifocal IOL group, but not BCDVA. The trifocal IOL group showed better contrast sensitivity under photopic, mesopic, with or without glare conditions (p < 0.05) and statistically significantly better dynamic vision at 15, 30, 60, and 90 degrees per second (dps) compared with the monofocal group (all p < 0.001). The strength of positive association only between UIVA and dynamic visual acuity increased as the velocity increased, but not UDVA or UNVA.

CONCLUSIONS

Diffractive trifocal IOL provides better postoperative full range vision acuity, contrast sensitivity, and dynamic vision compared with monofocal IOLs. And intermediate visual acuity is increasingly associated with DVA as the velocity increasing.

Peripheral Vision Tests in Sports: Training Effects and Reliability of Peripheral Perception Test

Various studies suggest the importance of peripheral vision (PV) in sports. Computer-based test systems provide objective methods to measure PV. Nevertheless, the reliability and training effects are not clarified in detail. The purpose of this investigation was to present a short narrative non-systematic review on computer-based PV tests and to determine the reliability and the training effects of peripheral perception sub-test (PP) of the Vienna test system (VTS) in a test–retest design. N = 21 male athletes aged between 20 and 30 years (M = 26.15; SD = 3.1) were included. The main outcome parameters were peripheral reaction (PR), PR left (PRL), PR right (PRR), field of vision (FOV), visual angle left (VAL), and visual angle right (VAR). Reliability was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland–Altman plots. Training effects were determined by students t-test. Good reliability was observed in PR, PRL, and PRR. Moderate reliability was found in FOV, VAL, and VAR. Significant improvements between T₀ and T₁ were found in PRL with a mean difference of 0.04 s (95% CI [0.00–0.07]) and in PR with a mean difference of 0.02 s (95% CI [0.00–0.05]). For PRR, FOV, VAL, VAR, no significant differences were detected. These results indicate that PP can be applied to asses PV abilities in sports. Future research is needed to clarify the influence of test repetitions on visuomotor learning in PP. Moreover, PV tests should be cross-validated with sport-specific measurements (e.g., on-field and/or ‘virtual reality’ approaches).

Refractive error and vision problems in children: association with increased sedentary behavior and reduced exercise in 9-year-old children in Ireland

PURPOSE

To investigate whether refractive error and vision problems in children are associated with increased sedentary behavior and reduced participation in physical activity and sport and, secondarily, to examine the relationship between vision problems and body mass index.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study of the first wave of the Growing Up in Ireland (GUI) Study, a nationally representative study of children in Ireland. Data was collected between August 2007 and May 2008. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated at the time of the interview. The presence of a vision problem requiring treatment, including refractive error, was detected by report of the primary care giver, usually the mother. Association between vision problems and sedentary behavior, physical activity, and level of participation in sports was investigated in adjusted regression analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 8,568 children (mean age, 9 ± 0.13 years; 4,024 [48.68%] males) were included. The presence of refractive error or a vision problem was reported for 1,000 (11.68%) children. The majority of children had normal weight, but 1,497 (17.5%) were overweight, and 446 (5.2%) were obese. A positive association between vision problems and sedentary behavior (P = 0.00089) and an inverse association with exercise (P = 0.01) were found. Overall, vision problems were not associated with BMI.

CONCLUSIONS

In this study cohort, refractive error and vision problems were associated with increased sedentary behavior and decreased physical activity, although no causal relationship was established.

Functional significance of stereopsis in professional table-tennis players

BACKGROUND

Stereopsis is the most important part of depth perception, especially in athletic population. At present, there are few studies on how to comprehensively evaluate athletes' stereoscopic function and how the impairment of stereoscopic function affects sports performance.

METHODS

Twenty-two professional table-tennis players from Sichuan Province Team were recruited as player group and 23 age-matched students were recruited as the controls. All subjects were measured the habitual visual acuity, best corrected visual acuity, dominant eye, retinoscopy and three stereo acuity tests. Both groups completed two motor skills tasks: Purdue Pegboard and beads threading with habitual binocular viewing and monocular viewing by covering dominant eye. In addition, the player group was asked to complete a brief questionnaire and catch balls served by the auto table-tennis machine under two viewing conditions.

RESULTS

The player group had better stereo acuity with median values of 60, 25 and 40 arc sec in TNO, Butterfly, and Frisby tests, respectively. There had statistically correlations between stereo acuity and two motor skills tasks. Both the two tasks were statistically significant different between binocular and monocular viewings in both groups. The player group had better performance on Purdue Pegboard task with binocular viewing (16±1.1, P=0.006) compared to the control group, while no statistical difference was found under monocular condition in beads threading task. In player group, the brief questionnaire demonstrated very negative feeling of players under monocular viewing and the number of catching balls had statistically significant difference between binocular (9.9±0.3) and monocular (6.9±1.6) viewings (P<0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Stereopsis plays an important role in sports performance, the stereo tests combined with Purdue pegboard can be used to evaluate athletes' stereoscopic function comprehensively.

Static and dynamic visual acuity and refractive errors in elite football players

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to investigate static and dynamic visual acuity, refractive error, and the use of visual compensation of elite football players.

METHODS

From 2015 to 2017, 147 professional players from five teams were analysed. Screening consisted of a survey about the use of visual correction, and measurement refractive error, static visual acuity and dynamic visual acuity. Refractive error was assessed using an autorefractor. Distance static visual acuity was evaluated using a Snellen chart. Dynamic visual acuity was measured at five metres using the software COI-SV. All athletes were male with a mean age of 24.6 ± 4.1 years.

RESULTS

The mean refractive error of the athletes was -0.04 ± 0.83 D, and 16.4 per cent were myopic. Statistically significant differences were found for dynamic visual acuity (p = 0.033), based on the position occupied. Goalkeepers displayed the best dynamic visual acuity and forwards had the lowest values (0.82 ± 0.14 and 0.62 ± 0.17, respectively). The forwards presented with the highest prevalence of myopia and goalkeepers the lowest, at 22.5 per cent and 12.5 per cent, respectively. All goalkeepers who needed to use a correction for play used it, whereas only 16 per cent of the forwards who needed a correction used it.

CONCLUSION

Dynamic visual acuity of forwards is lower than that of other players. Twenty-five per cent of players who need to use visual correction to practice sports actually use it.

Repetitive dynamic stereo test improved processing time in young athletes

BACKGROUND

Current studies revealed the importance of perceptual training for the treatment of amblyopia. To improve stereo vision on a higher level, visual tasks have to be completed within a limited time window like in repetitive visual function tests. "Processing time" as the reaction time in which the absence or presence of depth was identified correctly, is of better predictive value for perceiving the depth than the stereo threshold only.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the long-term effects of repetitive dynamic testing of stereopsis on processing time.

METHODS

15 male soccer athletes (13.3±3.2 years) underwent twelve sessions of a 15 minutes repetitive dynamic stereovision training over a period of six weeks, presented on a polarized 3D-TV in a four-alternative forced choice setup. We measured the response time of correct identified visual tasks of 11, 22, 44, 55, 66, 77 and 88arcsecs disparity before, after six sessions, after twelve sessions and after six month without testing. As response time is the sum of stereo processing time plus the motor reaction time, we defined the difference between the response times at 11 and 88arcsecs as "stereo processing time at 11arcsecs". A Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test was conducted between the testing sessions to evaluate significant changes in response time and stereo processing time.

RESULTS

After six sessions the mean stereo processing time at 11arcsecs decreased significantly from 804.4 ms to 403.7 ms (Z = -2.499, p = 0.012). Six months after the last training the stereo processing time at 11arcsecs remained at the level of the last session.

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that repetitive testing of stereovision is effective in improving processing time of stereoscopic tasks in young male athletes significantly long-term.