Gamification Design on Invisible Display for Amblyopia Treatment in Indian Children: Preliminary Design Intervention Study (Preprint)
BACKGROUND India has the highest number of patients with amblyopia worldwide. For this study, we have developed a novel gaming tablet for amblyopia treatment, called Occlu-tab, which can present visual stimuli to only one eye while both eyes are open. OBJECTIVE To investigate if Occlu-tab, a gaming tablet with invisible display, is effective in improving visual acuity in children with amblyopia. METHODS We recruited 12 children with amblyopia in India to undergo Occlu-tab training. With Occlu-tab, we used eight games to provide patients with well-known techniques for vision therapy: fixation, eye-hand coordination, and pursuit eye movement. Participants were instructed to play with the Occlu-tab in a silent therapy room for 60 min per day, 3 days per week, for 6 weeks while wearing perfectly corrected glasses. The best-corrected visual acuity was determined every 2 weeks until the end of the treatment. RESULTS All 12 participants showed improved visual acuity after 4-6 weeks of treatment. The treatment games were well received by Indian children, and several requests for additional types of games were made. Parameter estimators for fixed effect showed high significance (P<.001), which suggests an evident improvement effect of the Occlu-tabs. CONCLUSIONS Occlu-tab was effective in improving visual acuity in children with amblyopia. However, game design should be improved based on the analysis of cultural and religious practices. Several patients refused to participate in the trial since they were unable to report to the hospital regularly due to financial reasons. This observation demonstrates the need for home treatment for low-income patients. In addition, home health care will be very important under a pandemic or lockdown caused by coronavirus disease 2019. In the future, this technology will be required in more accessible devices, such as televisions, smartphones, and tablets.