Eye health

Professor Cathy Williams is working with colleagues in the Bristol Eye Hospital Special Needs Vision service to deliver care to children with eye and vision problems.

Eye movements are integral to healthy everyday vision, and can often be abnormal in children with neurodevelopmental problems. In a long-term collaboration with Prof Iain Gilchrist, a leading expert in the field of eye movement control, Prof Williams and her team have studied methods to best assess eye movements, in clinical scenarios and with an accurate eye tracker tool. The collaborative group have designed and piloted an app, based on the key principles of neurophysiology, using graphics developed by a local artist. This app has the potential to improve eye movement control for children with special needs, by encouraging regular 'practice' of vital movements.

The researchers aim to use Foundation funding to additionally carry out a formal randomised trial to assess the app's overall effectiveness. They aim to uncover if any benefits from app usage can translate to real-world daily tasks that involve eye movements.