Perceptual reorganisation in macular disease (360G-Wellcome-078571_Z_05_Z)

Macular Disease (MD) is the leading cause of visual impairment in developed countries. MD causes blind spots in central vision that cannot be cured and for which conventional ophthalmological treatment is of limited benefit. Furthermore, residual vision surrounding the blind spots can suffer from visual distortions and the scotomas themselves can appear "filled in". These perceptual changes are thought to be related to changes in the responses of cortical neurons whose responses recover and remap following damage to their retinal inputs, but analogous evidence in humans is lacking. This proposal examines perceptual reorganization following retinal damage in MD. We develop a new paradigm that will measure if and how remapping occurs in humans with central visual impairment. We use novel quantitative techniques to measure perceptual distortions accurately in patients. We will develop a technique for mapping scotomas with a non-invasive procedure that will be evaluated against existing, slower techniques. These results will be used to develop and test algorithms that geometrically transform images in a manner that will correct the perceptual distortions of the observer. This research aims to increase the efficiency of clinical assessment and maximise residual visual function in low vision observers