Abstract
Purpose :
To report the proof of concept of a novel device aimed to assess patient’s compliance with postoperative instructions regarding head orientation following a pneumatic retinopexy
Methods :
We include patients with a diagnosis of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment which were selected for pneumatic retinopexy. After explaining the justification, rationalization and the proper head position, they all wore the head-positioning tracking device on their forehead for 24 hours. For tracking, we use an ATmega32u4 microcontroller clocked at 8 MHz and at 3.3V logic powered by a 3.7 lithium polymer battery. For measuring orientation, we employed a 9-DOF sensor accelerometer, gyroscope, and magnetometer. Absolute orientation was measured via eteor vector through axis orientation. A deviation of more than 15% degrees, from the original position tridimensional axis, in any direction was considered significant and in non-compliance with the original instruction
Results :
We included 6 consecutive patients. The group wore the device for a mean of 19.17 ± 2.1 hours. Patients kept appropriate head positioning 2 ± 1.6 hours on average (range: 1 to 5 hours). Patients were more compliance with the Z-axis (6.5 ± 5.5 hours of proper positioning) and less compliance in the Y-axis (2.5± 2.8 of proper positioning). Mean X-axis compliance: 4.5± 3.3 hours
Conclusions :
Tracking the exact position of a patient’s head in real time is feasible and can potentially improve patient compliance with retina surgeon’s instructions
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2018 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Honolulu, Hawaii, April 29 - May 3, 2018.