Current Research

Vision Development in Early Life

We are studying how vision and oculomotor (eye teaming) function develops in infants and young children to gain insights into how they learn to see clearly and use both their eyes together. This will also help us to understand early risk factors for the development of childhood vision disorders such as amblyopia (poor vision) or strabismus (eye misalignment). We use non-invasive methodologies of photorefraction and autorefraction to measure eye alignment and focusing to evaluate the focusing and eye teaming system, as well as visual evoked potential to evaluate how the brain interprets visual information during the development.

We are recruiting babies (as young as 2 months of age) and young children with abnormal refractive error or strabismus (esotropia and intermittent exotropia). We are also looking for healthy babies and young children to learn more about normal and abnormal vision development.

Click here to participate or to learn more about studies on amblyopia, strabismus, and vision development.

Visual Function in Amblyopia

Amblyopia is the result of impaired binocular vision development in infancy and childhood. This may occur because one eye has a stronger prescription than the other or because one eye turns inward (esotropia) or outward (exotropia). Such differences between the two eyes can result in the brain favoring the better-seeing eye, and the worse eye starts developing abnormally. Amblyopia is most known to affect an individual’s ability to see clearly. However, amblyopia can also impact other visual functions, such as motion perception, blur detection, and eye teaming skills that can affect learning and reading. Sometimes, the ‘good eye’ also has visual deficits. We are studying these visual functions in children and adults with amblyopia before and after treatment, and investigating how they compare to children and adults with normal vision. We use non-invasive photorefraction to measure eye alignment and eye focusing.

We are recruiting children and adults with amblyopia as well as those who have been successfully treated for amblyopia. We are also looking for healthy children and adults who do not wear glasses and do not have a history of amblyopia.

Click here to participate or to learn more about studies on amblyopia, strabismus, and vision development.

Vision Therapy for Intermittent Exotropia

Intermittent exotropia (IXT) is a common form of strabismus where an eye turns outward sometimes. Although there are different approaches to manage IXT, the effectiveness of different treatment strategies is not fully understood. As part of a multi-site research project, we are conducting a clinical trial to assess the short-term effectiveness of in-office vision therapy in children with IXT. As part of the study, we are also characterising both eye movements and accommodation using objective eye movement recordings and photorefraction.

Click here to participate or to learn more about studies on amblyopia, strabismus, and vision development.

Pediatric Eye Disease Investigator Group

The Vision Development & Oculomotor lab at Stanford is part of the nationwide Pediatric Eye Disease Investigator Group (PEDIG). As a PEDIG site, we conduct laboratory studies and clinical trials to better understand, manage, and treat childhood vision disorders.

Click here to participate or to learn more about studies on amblyopia, strabismus, and vision development.

Randomized Trial to Evaluation Sequential Vs Simultaneous Patching for Amblyopia

We are conducting a randomized trial to determine whether simultaneous treatment with spectacles and patching has an equivalent outcome compared with sequential treatment, first with spectacles alone followed by patching (if needed).

We are recruiting children aged 3 to 12 years with previously untreated amblyopia.

Click here to participate or to learn more about studies on amblyopia, strabismus, and vision development.

Randomized trial of full-time occlusion therapy for intermittent Exotropia (IXT) in Children

The purpose of this study is to see if full-time patching can improve eye alignment in children with IXT in children 3 to 8 years old after 3 months of treatment.

Click here to participate or to learn more about studies on amblyopia, strabismus, and vision development.

At-home visual acuity testing

The purpose of this study is to test whether vision can be accurately tested at home using an iPhone application. Children will have their vision tested in our office using standard of care testing by certified study personnel before having their vision tested at home with their parent or care giver using an iPhone app.

Click here to participate or to learn more about studies on amblyopia, strabismus, and vision development.

Eye Problems in Concussed Children

Vision symptoms are common in children and adolescents following concussion. While most show an improvement in symptoms after the a few weeks, some continue to report vision problems for months or years. Currently, there is no standard of care for the treatment and management of post-concussion vision conditions, and vision examinations are not routinely incorporated in concussion management plans. To better understand the recovery of concussion-related vision disorders, we are conducting a multi-center study tracking oculomotor function and visual processing using standardized test batteries. This study will help us learn more about the time for recovery, the most effective tests that should be used in vision assessments, and the impact of vision symptoms in concussion recovery as well as their long-term effects on visual processing.

We are recruiting children and adolescents 12 years of age and older.

Click here to participate or learn more about our studies on child, adolescent, and adult concussion. 

Abnormal Visual Function in Concussed Adults

To better understand the nature of vision-related deficits following concussion and their impact on higher-order attentional processing, we are studying the visual systems of concussed, symptomatic young adults. We are particularly interested how concussed adults visually respond to moving targets, and how object motion relates to reported vision symptoms.

We are recruiting adults under 35 years of age who experienced a concussion in the last 12 months and continue to experience vision problems. We are also looking for adults under 35 years of age without a history of concussion.

Click here to participate or learn more about our studies on child, adolescent, and adult concussion. 

Patient-Reported Outcome Measures for Children with Focusing and Eye Teaming Problems

To develop a quality-of-life survey for children with focusing and eye teaming disorders, we are conducting focus groups or interviews with children and adolescents to explore the extent to which their eye problems bother them and impact their daily activities. The quality-of-life survey can eventually be used by doctors to measure how much these vision conditions affect a child’s life, and assess if treatment can improve their quality of life.

We are recruiting children 8 to < 18 years with vision problems following a concussion. 

Click here to participate or learn more about our studies on child, adolescent, and adult concussion.