A Night Vision Pocketscope for Patients With Retinitis Pigmentosa

Retinitis pigmentosa: visual function and multidisciplinary management

“…However it was expensive, difficult to purchase, difficult to hold and its narrow field of view limited its usefulness. 162,163 Night-scopes were the next development. These devices amplified the incoming light to create monochromatic green images.…”

Development and evaluation of a visual aid using see-through display for patients with retinitis pigmentosa

“…This might have been caused by the lack of appropriate training for adaptation to using a 49 minified image and/or transmittance of the see-through display; notably, the walking time with the device improved with each repetition (average walking time: practice one, 32.88 ± 13.76 s; practice two, 27.38 ± 10.31 s; walking test, 24.86 ± 8.66 s). As discussed in previous reports [8,9,11,12], the improvement of mobility in darkened conditions is explained by the effect of visual field expansion through minification of the view as well as by the ability to see the objects. In this study, we used only a micro lens (f3.8 F2.0) to create the necessary conditions, the magnification percentage of the image, however, can be adjusted easily by changing the camera lens.…”

“…Since the 1970s, several types of devices have been evaluated to address mobility problems due to night blindness [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]. Berson et al [7] first reported the helpfulness of a night vision enhancement device based on a military light-intensifier.…”

“…However, the device was not convenient for daily use because it was large, heavy and designed to be hand held. Although improved versions were developed, these devices proved unacceptable [8,9]. Binocular night vision goggles have the potential to improve mobility problems associated with night blindness [10,11,13,14].…”

Impact of night vision aid on orientation and mobility and daily activities

“…In the 1970s, night vision systems have been introduced to alleviate orientation and mobility problem experienced by RP people under reduced illumination [5]. More recently, Spandau et al [6] and Hartong [7] investigated the potential benefits of night vision goggles on mobility at night in realistic environments.…”