Primary angle-closure glaucoma, a common cause of blindness worldwide, is more frequent in subjects with “small eyes”, and may be prevented with relatively simple treatments. Evaluation of ocular structures resides on gonioscopy, an invasive and subjective examination performed by ophthalmologists particularly trained in the field. The aim of the proposed project is to develop an objective, non-invasive, low-cost, portable instrument for detecting patients at high risk for angle-closure glaucoma.
Gonioscopy, the gold standard tool for diagnosing angle-closure glaucoma, is highly subjective, and its findings are biased by several factors (e.g.: light intensity, mechanical compression). Notably, gonioscopy requires a long learning curve and well-trained personnel. The instrument here proposed aims to address these limits, giving automatic, non-invasive detection of high-risk subjects for angle-closure glaucoma. As a fast and realtime instrument, it may be used for screening in general population.
The most promising non-invasive technique is the Van Herick technique, that directly evaluates the Anterior Chamber Angle aperture. In general, that procedure is manually performed by an oculist through the use of a slit lamp, so it can not be defined as a portable technique. The aim of that project is to design a portable instrument able to perform the Van Herick procedure automatically.
