There’s a smartphone application that keeps mosquitoes away, so of course, the time has come to create an app for an even greater good.
A team at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has created a smartphone app that is as effective at testing eyesight as an optician’s clinic, according to BBC News.
The new technology could potentially change the level of eye care for millions of people in various parts of the world.
“The main reason for most people not getting eye treatment is simply that they don’t access the services and that’s usually because the services are so far away from them or are unaffordable,” stated Dr. Andrew Bastawrous who led the project.
“If we can detect people with visual impairment much earlier on then we have a much greater chance of increasing awareness and ensuring they have appropriate treatment. So something as simple as a vision test can be part of that journey.”
The research conducted for the Portable Eye Examination Kit, also known as Peek, has been published in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology, according to the U.K. publication The Telegraph.
The eye tests would reportedly feature a “tumbling E,” showing the letter fall across on the screen in different orientations. The patient would reportedly be standing two meters away, pointing in the direction they see the arms of the E while the tester uses the touch screen to swipe accordingly on the screen.
Tests have reportedly been carried out in 233 patients’ homes. The results reportedly showed that the app produced results that were equivalent to the more expensive standard electricity dependent chart.
“In this study we aimed to develop and validate a smartphone-based visual acuity test for eyesight which would work in challenging circumstances, such as rural Africa, but also provide reliable enough results to use in routine clinical practice in well-established healthcare systems,” Bastawrous said.
"Our ultimate hope is that the accuracy and easy to use features of Peek will lead to more people receiving timely and appropriate treatment and be given the chance to see clearly again.”
