DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW CORNEAL AESTHESIOMETER AND NORMS

DURING PHASE I, THE CREATION OF A SAFE, VALID, PRECISE, RELIABLE, RESEARCH PROTOTYPE INSTRUMENT FOR TESTING THE SOMATOSENSATION OF CORNEA, SCLERA, CONJUNCTIVA, AND EYELID IS EXPECTED. THE SPECIFIC AIMS OF PHASE I ARE TO: (1) MODIFY THE EXISTING WEINSTEIN ORAL MICROAESTHESIOMETER TO CREATE A NEW INSTRUMENT, A CORNEAL MICROAESTHESIOMETER, FOR TESTING CORNEAL SOMATOSENSATION; (2) DEMONSTRATE VALIDITY AND TEST-RETEST RELIABILITY; (3) DEVELOP NORMS ON ASMALL GROUP OF SUBJECTS; (4) EXPLORE THE FEASIBILITY OF OBTAINING CORTICAL EVOKED POTENTIALS; AND (5) EXPLORE, AS AVAILABLE IN THE SAMPLE, THE EFFECTS OF AGE, SEX, CONTACT LENSES, USE OF TOBACCO, AND USE OF ALCOHOL UPON CORNEAL THRESHOLDS. THE LONG-TERM OBJECTIVE IS TO ESTABLISH THE CORNEAL MICROAESTHESIOMETER TEST AS AN OFFICE PROCEDURE FOR SCREENING PATIENTS FOR: (1) SYSTEMIC, OCULAR, OR CORNEAL PROBLEMS; (2) FOR PREDICTING RECOVERY FROM SURGERY; AND (3) FOR EVALUATING IDEAL OPHTHALMIC DOSING ON AN INDIVIDUAL PATIENT BASIS. THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A CORNEAL AESTHESIOMETER THAT WILL NOT INJURE NEWLY TRANSPLANTED CORNEAS, THAT WILL NOT ELICIT APPREHENSION IN PATIENTS, AND THAT WILL GIVE VALID, PRECISE, AND RELIABLE TESTS. FURTHER, THE NEW CORNEAL AESTHESIOMETER COULD BE USED TO ELICIT CORTICAL EVOKED POTENTIALS FOR THE EVALUATION OF INFANTS OR OF MENTALLY IMPAIRED PATIENTS. IN ADDITION, THE FOLLOWING DISADVANTAGES OF CURRENT CORNEAL AESTHESIOMETERS WILL BE AVOIDED WITH THIS INSTRUMENT: (1) RISK OF TRANSMISSION OF INFECTION; (2) INABILITY TO DELIVER SUBTHRESHOLD STIMULATION; AND (3) INDUCING APPREHENSION IN THE PATIENT FROM A VISUALLY APPROACHING STIMULUS.