A perspective on psychophysical testing in children

Abstract

In this paper, we show that the development of acuity in infancy is not due solely to foveal maturation, since there is a clear development of acuity in the peripheral visual field.The development of peripheral acuity, and the naso-temporal asymmetry during early development reinforce the idea that the visual loss in adult strabismic amblyopes is not due to an arrest of development, but rather to the chronic interocular suppression of the deviated eye.The Teller Acuity Card Test does not reliably detect strabismic amblyopia, and therefore should not be recommended as a screening test. However, the test is adequate for diagnosing visual losses in children with organic eye disorders and possibly anisometropia. © 1990, College of Ophthalmologists. All right reserved.