Eyeworld

EW NEWS & OPINION 28 November 2015 by Matt Young and Gloria D. Gamat EyeWorld Contributing Writers speaker," Dr. Rao reported. "It is relatively new to the market, and its application in healthcare has been rapidly expanding. Among its use in oculoplastic surgery is documenta- tion of eyelid position." Noting that margin reflex distance is the distance between the corneal light reflex and the upper eyelid margin in primary gaze, the researchers mentioned that they had already demonstrated the utility of handheld digital photography for similar usage. Yet they seemed intrigued by Google Glass to be able to go be- yond current handheld modalities. "This proof of concept study compared clinically measured MRD- 1 and Google Glass photographs," Dr. Rao reported. "The MRD-1 was measured with a handheld ruler. Google Glass photographs were taken of each subject with a ruler placed on the forehead in plane with the corneal surface. Digital im- age analysis of the photographs was performed to obtain the MRD-1." Researchers studied 11 subjects, 10 women and 1 man (in 22 eyes without ophthalmic disease). Mean clinical margin reflex distance-1 (MRD-1) was 4.16 (with a range of 3.0 to 6.0). Meanwhile, the mean digital MRD-1 was revealed to be 4.30 (ranging between 3.08 to 5.78). No statistically significant difference between the groups was found. This is meaningful for several reasons. "Emergency providers see big potential for Google Glass," Dr. Rao said. "Google Glass offers the ability to analyze photographs for clinically relevant measurements. Our analysis demonstrates that these measure- ments were not statistically different from clinical evaluation." Limitations existed—such as camera position, Dr. Rao noted. "However, this proof of con- cept study opens the possibility to modifications to the hardware and/ or software of Google Glass to refine the photographic ease of use and resolution," Dr. Rao said. John Sheppard, MD, president, Virginia Eye Consultants, and pro- fessor of ophthalmology, microbiol- ogy and molecular biology, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Va., noted that Google Glass is "just like a fighter pilot's cockpit—you guesses about the future impact of this or similar devices on the indus- try. Meanwhile, pockets of research here and there have risen to show useful application of Google Glass in ophthalmic practice. Glass in ophthalmology in 2015 Rohini Rao, MD, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Boston, and colleagues presented a poster at the 2015 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) meeting related to Google Glass's ability to measure the margin reflex distance in oculoplastic surgery. "Google Glass is a commercially available wearable technology con- sisting of a camera, optical display, microphone, touchpad, accelerome- ter, gyroscope, and bone-conduction consider the implications of Google Glass as an ophthalmologist. For example, it has had some in ophthalmology thinking twice about the future of refractive lens exchange, which emphasizes specta- cle-corrected vision. "The ultimate irony would be if 15 years from now, everyone in this room has signed up for refractive lens exchange with one of these accommodating adjustable IOLs, yet everyone is wearing Google Glasses to read their emails," David Chang, MD, said at the Ophthalmology Innovation Summit (OIS) prior to the 2013 ASCRS•ASOA Symposium & Congress. Google Glass for consumers is back in redesign, and ophthal- mologists can only make educated Niche specialty uses outlive initial consumer concerns P rivacy issues were rife when Google Glass was launched in a limited fashion in 2013 because of its ability to record and photograph anywhere. Now that the initial controversial buzz has died down, it's interesting to note certain niche uses in ophthalmology that may be helping to drive the industry in the right direction. Recall that Google Glass is essentially a face computer—a heads-up display worn over one eye that allows users to see a screen and interact with the world through this transparent, digital prism. For vision of the future, it's hard not to at least The future of Google Glass in ophthalmology

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