Abstract
Purpose::
To describe age-specific Randot Preschool Stereoacuity test performance in African-American and Hispanic children 30 to 72 months of age.
Methods::
A population-based cohort of children 30-72 mos. of age underwent Randot Preschool Stereoacuity testing prior to any cover testing or visual acuity testing. All children had a full clinical examination including determination of refractive error, strabismus and amblyopia. Proportions of children with stereoacuity 60 arc-seconds or better for different age groups, genders and ethnicities were evaluated using chi-square analysis.
Results::
Of 3363 Hispanic and African-American children, 80% were able to perform stereoacuity testing, and received a score between 800 and 40 arc-seconds, or "no stereopsis". Scores of "no stereopsis" were obtained in 11%, 11%, 5% and 3% of testable children 30-36 mos., 37-48 mos., 49-60 mos., and 61-72 mos. of age, respectively. The modal scores were 200 arc-seconds, 60 arc-seconds, 60 arc-seconds, and 40 arc-seconds in testable children 30-36 mos., 37-48 mos., 49-60 mos., and 61-72 mos. of age, respectively. Stereoacuity was 60 arc-seconds or better in 15%, 31%, 50% and 66% of testable children 30-36 mos., 37-48 mos., 49-60 mos., and 61-72 mos. of age, respectively. There was significant improvement in performance with age (p<0.0001, trend test). The proportion of African-American children 30-36 mos. of age with 60 arc-seconds or better (21%) was higher than that for Hispanic children (9%) (p=0.02), but there were no ethnicity-related differences in any other age category (p>=0.35), or overall after adjusting for age (p=0.47). There were no gender related differences after adjusting for age (p=0.06). There were no significant changes in the stereopsis scores for any age group after excluding 150 children with strabismus or amblyopia.
Conclusions::
Randot Preschool Stereoacuity test performance improves with age. By 5 years of age, two thirds of testable children demonstrate stereoacuity of 60 arc-seconds or better. There are no consistent gender or ethnicity related differences in stereoacuity measurements in this age group. Poor stereoacuity scores in young children are not necessarily indicative of subnormal binocular vision.
Keywords: binocular vision/stereopsis