Abstract
BACKGROUND Refractive error is the world’s second most common cause of preventable blindness. Astigmatism comprises a major percentage of refractive error. can be estimated by various modalities, commonly used are the Automated Refractometer and Streak Retinoscope. Automated Refractometer is widely used in outpatient department (OPD) setups but the retinoscope is convenient in camps and where automated refractometers are not available. We wanted to compare the precision of the automated refractometer and streak retinoscopy techniques for estimation of astigmatism with personalized correction acceptance. METHODS It is a prospective, observational and comparative study done on 200 patients with the refractive error between the ages of 15 – 40 years, who presented to the Department of Ophthalmology at MVJ Medical College between November 2019 - 2021. Ophthalmological examination was done along with automated refractometry and streak retinoscopy followed by a subjective correction. The automated refractometer and streak retinoscope values were compared with the bestcorrected visual acuity to see which was better accepted by the patient. Statistically, a P-value < 0.05 was taken as significant. RESULTS The study showed that the dioptric value of the spherical and cylindrical powers was better estimated by streak retinoscope and had a statistically significant pvalue of < 0.001. However, the axis of the cylindrical component was better estimated by the automated refractometer which also had a significant P-value (< 0.001). CONCLUSIONS The dioptric value of the spherical and cylindrical powers was better estimated by streak retinoscope and the axis of the cylindrical component was better estimated by the automated refractometer. The study helps in learning the benefits of the two modalities in day-to-day clinical practice to weigh out their advantages and disadvantages to decide which modality of objective estimation of the refractive error can be used for each patient’s subjective refraction. KEY WORDS Astigmatism, Refractive Error, Streak Retinoscope, Automated Refractometer
Published Version
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