Impact of online vision intervention on functional vision in children with multiple disabilities

Abstract

Disruption of vision intervention (VI) worsens global development of children with multiple disability (MD). Digital platforms help parents to continue vision intervention in pandemics. To the best of our knowledge, no studies have been done to assess the impact of online VI, therefore this is first. The aim is to study the impact of online VI on functional vision of children with MD during COVID-19. Fifteen children with MD recruited for in-office VI had abandoned it during the first pandemic, but had been able to continue through online during second pandemic and were recruited. Impact of online VI was retrospectively examined, by comparing functional vision (grating acuity [GA] and contrast sensitivity [CS]) at the time of discontinuance and period with online sessions. Parents received questionnaire to assess their perceptions about online VI. Discontinuity of in-office sessions during the first wave resulted in deterioration of functional vision. GA decreased from 1.5 to 0.9 cycles per degree (CPD; p = .012) and CS decreased from baseline in eight children. Upon lockdown relaxation, resumption of in-office VI showed improvement. GA improved from 0.9 to 1.7 CPD (p = .009) and CS improved in 10 children. However, during the second wave, with institution of online sessions, GA and CS were either maintained or improved. Results from questionnaire showed high satisfaction level of online VI among parents. Although advantages of in-office VI are undeniable, functional vision outcomes and parental satisfaction encourages to combine online and in-office VI whenever necessary.