Driving with Bioptic Telescopes

Owsley, Cynthia

doi:10.1097/opx.0b013e3182678dc8

Cited by 25 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 35 publications

(40 reference statements)

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“…2, 15 The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among performance on the Ohio Highway Patrol test for licensure, hours of driver training received, and visual and demographic factors that have previously been associated with driving performance or safety, including visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, previous driving experience, age, and gender. We also examined the relationship between nystagmus and Highway patrol test for licensure outcomes, as there is reason to believe that nystagmus could make accessing the bioptic telescope more difficult, and others have speculated that people with nystagmus should not be bioptic drivers.…”

Section: Purposementioning

confidence: 99%

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Vision, Training Hours, and Road Testing Results in Bioptic Drivers

Dougherty

Flom

Bullimore

et al. 2015

Optometry and Vision Science

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Purpose Bioptic telescopic spectacles (BTS) can be used by people with central visual acuity that does not meet the state standards to obtain an unrestricted driver’s license. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among visual and demographic factors, training hours, and the results of road testing for bioptic drivers. Methods A retrospective study of patients who received an initial daylight bioptic examination at the Ohio State University and subsequently received a bioptic license was conducted. Data were collected on vision including visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and visual field. Hours of driver training and results of Highway Patrol road testing were extracted from records. Relationships among vision, training hours, and road testing were analyzed. Results Ninety-seven patients who completed a vision examination between 2004 and 2008 and received daylight licensure with BTS were included. Results of the first Highway Patrol road test were available for 74 patients. The median interquartile range (IQR) hours of training prior to road testing was 21±17 hours, (range of 9 to 75 hours). Candidates without previous licensure were younger (p< 0.001) and had more documented training (p< 0.001). Lack of previous licensure and more training were significantly associated with having failed a portion of the Highway Patrol test and points deducted on the road test. Conclusions New bioptic drivers without previous non-bioptic driving experience required more training and performed more poorly on road testing for licensure than those who had previous non-bioptic licensure. No visual factor was predictive of road testing results after adjustment for previous experience. The hours of training received remained predictive of road testing outcome even with adjustment for previous experience. These results suggest that previous experience and trainer assessments should be investigated as potential predictors of road safety in bioptic drivers in future studies.

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Section: Purposementioning

confidence: 99%

“…BTS can be used in approximately 40 states for this purpose. 1–2 BTS consist of either monocular or binocular telescopes mounted to a pair of spectacles. 3 The telescope can be mounted to the bridge of the spectacle frame or in a drilled hole in one of the spectacle lenses (the carrier lenses).…”

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confidence: 99%

Vision, Training Hours, and Road Testing Results in Bioptic Drivers

Dougherty

Flom

Bullimore

et al. 2015

Optometry and Vision Science

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“… 7 , 8 When visual acuity falls below the requirement for an unrestricted license (e.g., 20/40 in many states and countries), individuals will automatically be denied a license, which may lead to social isolation, loss of independence, depression, and decreased quality of life. 9 – 12 In many states in the United States, 13 , 14 the province of Quebec in Canada, 15 and the Netherlands, 16 people with moderately reduced visual acuity may be permitted to drive on a restricted license with the aid of a bioptic telescope. This small telescope, which is usually mounted at the top of the spectacle lens before one eye (although occasionally bioptic telescopes are mounted binocularly), 17 is used intermittently for tasks such as reading road signs and determining the status of traffic light signals.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bioptic Telescope Use and Driving Patterns of Drivers with Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Bowers

Sheldon

DeCarlo

et al. 2016

Trans. Vis. Sci. Tech.

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PurposeTo investigate the telescope use and driving patterns of bioptic drivers with age-related macular degeneration (AMD).MethodsA questionnaire addressing telescope use and driving patterns was administered by telephone interview to three groups of bioptic drivers: AMD (n = 31; median 76 years); non-AMD first licensed with a bioptic (n = 38; 53 years); and non-AMD first licensed without a bioptic (n = 47; 37 years). Driving patterns of bioptic AMD drivers were also compared with those of normal vision (NV) drivers (n = 36; 74 years) and nonbioptic AMD drivers (n = 34; 79 years).ResultsBioptic usage patterns of AMD drivers did not differ from those of the younger bioptic drivers and greater visual difficulty without the bioptic was strongly correlated with greater bioptic helpfulness. Bioptic AMD drivers were more likely to report avoidance of night driving than the age-similar NV drivers (P = 0.06). However, they reported less difficulty than the nonbioptic AMD drivers in all driving situations (P ≤ 0.02). Weekly mileages of bioptic AMD drivers were lower than those of the younger bioptic drivers (P < 0.001), but not the NV group (P = 0.54), and were higher than those of the nonbioptic AMD group (P < 0.001).ConclusionsOur results suggest that bioptic telescopes met the visual demands of drivers with AMD and that those drivers had relatively unrestricted driving habits.Translational RelevanceLicensure with a bioptic telescope may prolong driving of older adults with AMD; however, objective measures of bioptic use, driving performance, and safety are needed.

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“…Another important gap in the literature is that little is known about which skills are most problematic for drivers with central visual loss as they learn to drive with a bioptic telescope (Owsley, 2012). While a number of publications have described the different components of training (Jose & Butler, 1975; Levin & Kelleher, 1975), none have evaluated the relative efficacy of these training processes or the optimum length of time required for training.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characteristics of on-road driving by persons with central vision loss: Learning to drive with a bioptic telescope

Wood

Elgin

McGwin

et al. 2015

Assistive Technology

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There is limited research on the driving performance and safety of bioptic drivers and even less regarding the driving skills that are most challenging for those learning to drive with bioptic telescopes. This research consisted of case studies of five trainee bioptic drivers whose driving skills were compared with those of a group of licensed bioptic drivers (n=23) while they drove along city, suburban, and controlled-access highways in an instrumented dual-brake vehicle. A certified driver rehabilitation specialist was positioned in the front passenger seat to monitor safety and two backseat evaluators independently rated driving using a standardized scoring system. Other aspects of performance were assessed through vehicle instrumentation and video recordings. Results demonstrate that while sign recognition, lane keeping, steering steadiness, gap judgments and speed choices were significantly worse in trainees, some driving behaviors and skills, including pedestrian detection and traffic light recognition were not significantly different to those of the licensed drivers. These data provide useful insights into the skill challenges encountered by a small sample of trainee bioptic drivers which, while not generalizable because of the small sample size, provide valuable insights beyond that of previous studies and can be used as a basis to guide training strategies.

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Driving with Bioptic Telescopes

Cited by 25 publications

References 35 publications

Vision, Training Hours, and Road Testing Results in Bioptic Drivers

Vision, Training Hours, and Road Testing Results in Bioptic Drivers

Bioptic Telescope Use and Driving Patterns of Drivers with Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Characteristics of on-road driving by persons with central vision loss: Learning to drive with a bioptic telescope

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