Mobility and Fall Risk in Central Visual Field Loss

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Mobility and Fall Risk in Central Visual Field Loss

Principal Investigator:

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of vision loss in the developed world. Central visual field loss due to diseases such as AMD is a large and growing problem. It is also associated with higher risk of falls and, therefore injury. Although much has been done to understand visual limitations associated with this condition, one of its most dangerous and poorly understood outcomes is the increase in the risk of falls, which can be debilitating and even deadly, especially in the age group most affected by AMD. The exact reasons for the increased fall risk are unknown; a combination of visual, vestibular, oculomotor and affective changes are likely. Loss of important visual information can lead to poor motion planning, stiffening and higher incidence of falls. These changes, such as factors associated with falls-related anxiety, modifiable, thus presenting an opportunity for rehabilitation.

In this project we look at both the individual factors that are likely to contribute to fall-risk in central field loss and how they can be modified, as well asthe opportunities for collaboration between clinicians, researchers, and patients to increase awareness of fall risk and mobility limitations in central field loss and develop best rehabilitation approaches for this population.

Publications

Journal Article
Presentations/Posters

Labs

Eye-Head Movement Laboratory

Our laboratory is interested in how changes in visual and/or vestibular function affect eye/head coordination, balance, and mobility, particularly in aging. We are currently pursuing two main lines of research: 1. The effects of central visual field loss on eye

Collage of RERC staff mebers and RERC projects

Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center

The Center’s research goal is to develop and apply new scientific knowledge and practical, cost-effective devices to better understand and address the real-world problems of blind, visually impaired, and deaf-blind consumers. The RERC has many ongoing R&D projects and collaborative

Current
Past

Catherine Agathos

Anca Velisar

Hirva Patel

Collaborators

Internal
External

Don Fletcher

Manfred MacKeben

Preeti Verghese

William Young, PhD

Fundings

Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center:Develop and Evaluate Technology for Low Vision, Blindness and Multi-Sensory Loss

Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute to Illuminate Adaptive Strategies in Vision Impairment at IMRF Symposium

June 16, 2024

The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute played a key role at this year’s International Multisensory Research Forum (IMRF) in Reno, Nevada, beginning June 17, 2024. An all-SKERI symposium “Shifting Sensory Reliance: Adaptive Strategies in Vision Impairment and Blindness.”