Stereoblind Research Articles

Incidence of stereo blindness in a recent VR distance perception user study

Estimates of stereo-blindness, the inability to see in 3D using stereopsis, often sit in the 5-10% range. At the Curtin University HIVE visualization facility, we regularly show stereoscopic content. During those demonstrations we invariably show a test random dot stereogram and it’s been our casual observation that the incidence of stereo-blindness amongst visits has been much lower than the 5-10% figure, perhaps as low as 2%. Our thought was that perhaps eye care has improved since the time that the original stereo-blindness studies were performed. A VR based user study was recently run in the HIVE, as part of a PhD project, with an aim to study distance perception in underwater virtual heritage experiences. Distance perception is facilitated by a range of visual cues, including stereoscopic vision, and as a result we screened participants for stereo-blindness. Using a standardized stereo test, we found approximately 5% of participants reported as stereo blind. This presentation will provide some background on stereo-blindness, and discuss issues related to measuring stereo-blindness and its likely prevalence in the general population. It will also provide an early look at the VR based user study investigating distance perception in underwater virtual heritage experiences.

Age is highly associated with stereo blindness among surgeons: a cross-sectional study.

The prevalence of stereo blindness in the general population varies greatly within a range of 1-30%. Stereo vision adds an extra dimension to aid depth perception and gives a binocular advantage in task completion. Lack of depth perception may lower surgical performance, potentially affecting surgical outcome. 3D laparoscopy offers stereoscopic vision of the operative field to improve depth perception and is being introduced to several surgical specialties; however, a normal stereo vision is a prerequisite. The aim of this study was to establish the prevalence of stereo blindness among surgeons in the field of general surgery, gynecology, and urology as these are potential users of 3D laparoscopy. The study was conducted according to the STROBE guidelines for cross-sectional studies. Medical doctors from the department of general surgery, gynecology, and urology were recruited and stereo tested by the use of the Random Dot E stereo test. Upon stereo testing, a demographic questionnaire was completed. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was employed to assess the association between stereo blindness and the variables resulting from the univariate analysis. Three hundred medical doctors completed the study. Of these 9.7% were stereo blind. There were 47% women and 53% men, aged 25-71years. General surgery was represented with 64% of the participants, gynecology with 26%, and urology with 10%. Age (OR 5.6; CI 1.7-18.9; P=0.005) and not being aware of having any vision anomaly in need for correction (OR 4; CI 1.4-11.4; P=0.010) were significantly associated with stereo blindness. Approximately one in ten medical doctors in general surgery, gynecology, and urology were stereo blind with an increasing prevalence with age. This is relevant since stereo blind surgeons will not benefit from the implementation of 3D laparoscopy.

Assessing stereo blindness and stereo acuity on digital displays

Previous studies on stereoscopic acuity have shown that the percentage of stereo blind subjects is relevant. Moreover, stereoscopic visualization is becoming widely diffused in different fields, like, e.g., entertainment, surgery or VR training, where it is necessary an accurate assessment of stereoscopic abilities of the involved subjects. Therefore, there might be the need of performing a stereo blindness and stereo acuity test before each visualization session involving stereoscopic images. In this paper, we propose a method to assess stereo acuity and stereo blindness directly on the chosen device, under the same visualization condition and setup adopted for the tasks to perform, in order to have the same perceptual response. We present software-based tests suitable for a generic stereoscopic displays, and we compare their effectiveness performing a comparison with a standard physical, card-based, test commonly used in assessment of stereo acuity and stereo blindness. We provide to the reader all the details to perform autonomously the tests, of which images will be downloadable from web.