A review of current technology used in evaluating visual function in glaucoma

Abstract

Glaucoma is a blinding disease associated with characteristic progressive optic nerve damage and visual field loss. Visual field testing in the form of automated perimetry is critical in the clinical diagnosis and monitoring of glaucoma. Functional tests can also be powerful research tools in clinical trials and in the field of neuroprotection. Standard automated perimetry (SAP) commonly used today, however, has its limitations. Early diagnosis of glaucoma based on functional measures can be challenging since it has been shown that retinal ganglion cell loss precedes defects detected on SAP. In addition, SAP is a subjective test prone to inter-test variability making the evaluation of disease progression problematic. Newer algorithms and functional tests are now being used and developed in an attempt to improve the accuracy in the detection of glaucoma and disease progression.