Affiliations: [a] Special Interdisciplinary Coordination of Information and Communication Technologies, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Araranguá, SC, Brazil
| [b] Rehabilitation Sciences Postgraduate Program, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Araranguá, SC, Brazil
| [c] Department of Health Sciences, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Araranguá, SC, Brazil
| [d] Neurosciences and Behavior Postgraduate Program, Department of Experimental Psychology, Institute of Psychology, São Paulo University, São Paulo, Brazil
| [e] Department of Computing, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Araranguá, SC, Brazil
Correspondence:
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Address for correspondence: Cristiane Aparecida Moran, Rua Pedro João Pereira, 150 –Mato Alto, Araranguá, SC, 88905-120, Brazil. E-mail: cristianemoran@gmail.com, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1649-2073.
Abstract: BACKGROUND:Premature newborns have a higher risk of abnormal visual development and visual impairment. OBJECTIVE:To develop a computational methodology to help assess functional vision in premature infants by tracking iris distances. METHODS:This experimental study was carried out with children up to two years old. A pattern of image capture with the visual stimulus was proposed to evaluate visual functions of vertical and horizontal visual tracking, visual field, vestibulo-ocular reflex, and fixation. The participants’ visual responses were filmed to compose a dataset and develop a detection algorithm using the OpenCV library allied with FaceMesh for the detection and selection of the face, detection of specific facial points and tracking of the iris positions is done. A feasibility study was also conducted from the videos processed by the software. RESULTS:Forty-one children of different ages and diagnoses participated in the experimental study, forming a robust dataset. The software resulted in the tracking of iris positions during visual function evaluation stimuli. Furthermore, in the feasibility study, 8 children participated, divided into Pre-term and Term groups. There was no statistical difference in any visual variable analyzed in the comparison between groups. CONCLUSION:The computational methodology developed was able to track the distances traveled by the iris, and thus can be used to help assess visual function in children.
