Navigation performance in glaucoma: virtual-reality-based assessment of path integration

• Published in: Scientific reports 2024-09, Vol.14 (1), p.21320-9, Article 21320
• Main Authors: Andac, Safa, Stolle, Francie H., Bernard, Matthieu, Al-Nosairy, Khaldoon O., Wolbers, Thomas, Hoffmann, Michael B.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/378/1689/364; 631/378/2613; 692/699/3161/3172; Acuity; Aged; Case-Control Studies; Computer applications; Female; Glaucoma; Glaucoma - physiopathology; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; multidisciplinary; Navigation; Path integration; Quality of life; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Spatial Navigation - physiology; Travel; Virtual Reality; Visual Acuity - physiology; Visual field; Visual Fields - physiology; Visual impairment; Visual perception
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-72040-8

Navigation is essential for moving between locations in our daily lives. We investigated the relationship between visual impairment in glaucoma and path-integration-based navigation. Fourteen glaucoma and 15 controls underwent ophthalmological examination (including visual acuity (logMAR), visual field sensitivity (MD: mean deviation from matched reference cohort), and peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (pRNFL)). Both groups navigated physically in virtual reality (VR) environments during daylight and dawn conditions. Briefly, the participants traversed a path marked by three targets, subsequently pointing back to the path’s origin. Outcome measures included (i) travel-time, (ii) pointing-time, and (iii) Euclidian-distance error between indicated and starting position. Robust linear regression was conducted between visual function outcomes of the better eye and VR outcome measures. Glaucoma patients showed increase in travel-time (by 8.2 ± 1.7 s; p  = 0.002) and in pointing-time (by 5.3 ± 1.6 s; p  = 0.016). Predictors were MD for all outcome measures ( p