Focusing Control in Squint and Eye Strain
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Focusing Control in Squint and Eye Strain
IRAS ID
200062
Contact name
Anna Horwood
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Reading
Duration of Study in the UK
5 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
This study will research why and how the eyes of children and youngsters with squints, lazy eyes and eye strain fail to keep their eyes straight and co-ordinate focusing (the processes of ACCOMMODATION to make things clear, and CONVERGENCE to keep them aligned).
We will invite ≈200 patients with two specific groups of eye diagnoses from the clinical caseload of the Royal Berkshire Hospital for testing in our child-friendly laboratory. We will assess how their focusing control differs from normal so clinicians can better understand the causes and plan treatment. Testing will not involve uncomfortable, unpleasant, risky or invasive methods, change to their care or novel treatments. It is a long term, minimally funded, observational project.
Our lab's work has changed how ophthalmologists understand and treat their patients (including changing current clinical guidelines). However two important areas remain unexplored:
1. Constant squints. These are more complex than the intermittent squints we have already studied; but are more damaging to eyesight and children's lives (and much more difficult to cure). Only by understanding how children control their focusing can we target existing treatments and develop new ones. This study will use methods already successfully used in intermittent squint to move onto constant squint; comparing laboratory results with current clinical test results.
2. “Accommodative problems” and Medically Unexplained Visual Symptoms (MUS). Many children and young adults visit eye clinics complaining of blurred, lost or double vision and eye strain. There is often nothing physically wrong with the eyes, but symptoms are very real and often anxiety-based. Clinical tests currently only guess what is actually going on with their focusing. Our lab will measure precisely what drives the problems and if, and how much, focusing actually changes when children complain of symptoms. We will also relate our findings to an estimate of levels of anxiety.REC name
West of Scotland REC 5
REC reference
16/WS/0116
Date of REC Opinion
8 Jun 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion