Preattentive Visual Search (PAVS): A Clinical Tool for Glaucoma

Glaucoma is known to cause peripheral field loss but its impact is often underestimated. The inability to detect a target in an isolated area of the visual field may not be perceived as a significant disability. The determination here however that glaucoma adversely affects an individual’s capacity to deploy attention is an important one. This can be applied to infer the potential impact of the condition on lifestyle, even in the absence of diffuse perimetric field loss. Everyday tasks such as searching for car keys may prove more tedious and require more serial inspection. The ability to guide attention is a fundamental capacity of the human system and when compromised through visual dysfunction has the potential for devastating consequences