Reproducibility and Objective Control in Computer Measurement of Fusion Reserves

• Published in: Neuroscience and behavioral physiology 2024-02, Vol.54 (2), p.301-312
• Main Authors: Bolshakov, A. S., Vasilyeva, N. N., Rozhkova, G. I.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Behavioral Sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Neurobiology; Neurosciences; Reproducibility; Visual System
• ISSN: 0097-0549; 1573-899X
• DOI: 10.1007/s11055-024-01598-7

Fusion reserves (FR) are among the main indicators of the stable operation of the fusion mechanisms which make up the physiological basis of binocular perception, though precise assessment of FR remains problematic. FR is measured by introducing and gradually increasing an angular mismatch between the settings of the accommodation and vergence systems until the mismatch reaches critical angles at which the fusion mechanisms cease to function, as assessed by the subjective sensations of subjects reporting disintegration of a binocular image into two monocular images. The subjectivity of these estimates of FR, as well as their poorly studied relationship with the parameters of test objects and the measurement procedure, make it difficult to determine standard values and to create databases for FR. Attempts to overcome these shortcomings, which are inherent in traditional methods of measuring FR, were made at the end of the last century by applying computerized methods [Rozhkova et al., 1996a,b; 1998]. We present here the results of a critical assessment of a computerized method for measuring FR using the author’s own interactive computer program, FUZIYA [Bolshakov and Rozhkova, 2013], which generates changing test images on a special display designed for polarization-based separation of the left and right test object presentation channels. The objectives of the study were to assess the accuracy and reproducibility of the measurement results and to test the effectiveness of our previously proposed method for software-defined objective monitoring of binocular image break. The data obtained confirm the potential of the approach used and clarify specific forms of its appropriate application.