Self-assessment of Angles of Strabismus with Photographic Purkinje I and IV Reflection Pattern Evaluation

Background: Accurate assessment of the angle of strabismus, e.g. of variable angles of strabismus, is crucial in preoperative patient management and is usually performed in a clinical environment. Objective assessment by patients themselves, under everyday conditions, could contribute to a better preoperative work-up. A new objective evaluation procedure for the measurement of manifest angles of strabismus for near and distance fixation by the patient himself is presented.

Methods: To account for the modified experimental setup used for the self-assessment, an amended computation procedure of Purkinje reflection pattern evaluation was developed. For measurement, patients and controls placed their head on a head/chin rest and fixated at 33 cm or 4 m distance in primary position. A reflex camera and three photo flash units were positioned on a special frame underneath the visual axis and in front of the subject so that both eyes could be photographed simultaneously. The camera's remote shutter control was released together with the photo flash units by the properly fixating subject. The angles of strabismus were obtained from the series of pictures through later evaluation of the Purkinje I and IV reflection patterns recorded in the photographs of the eyes.

Results: Measurements of the ocular alignment in two control groups and in a group of strabismic subjects showed satisfactory accuracy of the "self-assessment" method compared to "standard" Purkinje reflection pattern evaluation and orthoptic measurements of the angle of strabismus.

Conclusion: The modified "self-assessment" method can be used for the objective recording of angles of strabismus as needed in the preoperative work-up of patients with variable angles of strabismus, over prolonged periods of time, and outside a clinical setting.