Purpose: To determine the prevalence of refractive errors in a group of 8-year-old school children in northwestern Poland. Material and Methods: In 2017–2019, refractive errors were examined in a group of 1518 Caucasian children aged 8 years old with cycloplegia. Refraction was obtained with a hand-held autorefractor (Retinomax 3). The refractive error reading was expressed as the spherical equivalent (SE) as myopia (≤−0.5 D), emmetropia (>−0.5 D to ≤+0.5 D), mild hyperopia (>+0.5 D to ≤+2.0 D) and hyperopia (>+2.0 D), and astigmatism (≤−0.75 DC) and anisometropia (≥1.00 D). Data analysis was performed using Statistica 13.5 software and included Pearson’s chi-squared and Mann–Whitney U tests. p-values of <0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: Mild hyperopia was most common (37.6%), myopia was observed in 16.8% and astigmatism in 10.6% of participants. Pseudomyopia concerned up to 51.91% children. Girls were significantly more likely to have mild hyperopia (p = 0.0144) and were significantly more likely to wear glasses (p = 0.00093). Conclusions: Screening children for refractive errors after cycloplegia is key for detecting accommodative spasm and refractive errors. The largest group of children presented with mild hyperopia, which is a physiological feature of refraction in 8-year-old children, but myopia and astigmatism were the most common refractive errors.

Background: The variability of the obtained results of manual tests assessing the angle of strabismus depends on the experience, skills, and training of the examiner. The authors hope that this new measuring device will provide a more sensitive and repeatable method for detecting small strabismus angles compared to the gold standard—PCT. The purpose of this article is to present an innovative strabismus angle demonstration device, called Strabiscan, to provide automated measurements of eye deviation and to compare the obtained results of these measurements to the traditional manual method. Methods: For patients with manifest strabismic disease (n = 30) and a group of healthy subjects (n = 30), a detailed history was taken and routine ophthalmologic examinations were performed, including best-corrected distance visual acuity, assessment of refractive error using an autorefractometer after cycloplegia, biomicroscopic evaluation of the anterior segment of the eye and evaluation of the eye fundus by indirect ophthalmoscopy. Subsequently, each patient and healthy subject was subjected to a prismatic cover–uncover test using a manual method, after which the presence of strabismus was detected and its angle assessed using a Strabiscan demonstration device. Results: In the control group using the Strabiscan demonstration device, small-angle latent strabismus ≤ 3DP was diagnosed in 83% of patients, while >3DP was found in 13%. In contrast, using the prismatic cover–uncover test, latent strabismus ≤ 3DP was diagnosed in only 13% of patients, and latent strabismus with an angle > 3DP was found in 13% of patients. No statistically significant differences were noted in the measurements of strabismus angles made by the different methods. Conclusions: The Strabiscan demonstration device allows quick and accurate assessment of the strabismus angle. Compared to the prismatic cover–uncover test, it has a higher sensitivity for detecting low-angle latent strabismus. Measurements with the Strabiscan do not require the presence of additional assistants for the test.

Purpose: To present the current state of knowledge and our diagnosed patients with congenital stationary night blindness. Material and methods: Data from the PubMed database on CSNB and the presentation of patients with complete and incomplete forms of this condition. Patients underwent routine ophthalmologic examination, optical coherence tomography, and full-field elecroretinogram (ERG-ISCEV), ON-OFF ERG. Results: CSNB is a group of rare, non-progressive retinal diseases characterized by impaired night vision from birth, reduced visual acuity, myopia, nystagmus, and strabismus. Color vision and fundus imaging are most often normal. CSNB is mainly inherited autosomal recessively. Eighteen genes with more than 360 pathogenic variants have been detected in this condition. The effect of gene mutations is to damage the function of rods (Riggs type) and bipolar cells of the retina (Schubert–Bornstein type). The key diagnostic test in CSNB is ERG. In diagnosed cases of complete CSNB the following types have been registered: rod ERG absent, rod–cone response negative (ON bipolar cell defect), and photopic ERG enlarged a-wave. In incomplete CSNB-rod ERG-subnormal, rod-cone response-negative (bipolar cell defect ON, OFF), photopic ERG-subnormal with a double peak in the flicker fusion frequency. Knowledge of the phenotypic changes associated with various gene pathogenic variants is still very limited, hindering the ability to correctly diagnose a patient based on clinical examination and additional ophthalmologic tests. However, some phenotypic features found in our cases were consistent with pathogenic variants previously described in the literature and helped to make a diagnosis that was proven by genetic testing. Conclusions: Congenital stationary night blindness should be considered in the diagnosis of retinal diseases manifesting with impaired night vision. A correct diagnosis is especially important for the patients, as it is nonprogressive, unlike other diseases that should be considered in the differential diagnoses.

Background: The variability of the obtained results of manual tests assessing the angle of strabismus depends on the experience, skills, and training of the examiner. The authors hope that the new measuring device will provide a more sensitive and repeatable method for detecting small strabismus angles compared to the gold standard – PCT. The purpose of this article is to present an innovative strabismus angle demonstration device, called Strabiscan, to present automated measurements of eye deviation, and to compare the obtained results of these measurements to the traditional manual method. Methods: In patients with the manifest strabismic disease (n = 30) and a group of healthy subjects (n = 30), a detailed history was taken and routine ophthalmologic examinations were performed, including best-corrected distance visual acuity, assessment of refractive error using an autorefractometer after cycloplegia, biomicroscopic evaluation of the anterior segment of the eye, and evaluation of the eye fundus by indirect ophthalmoscopy. Subsequently, each patient and healthy subjects were subjected to a prismatic cover-uncover test using a manual method, and then the presence of strabismus was detected and its angle assessed using demonstration Strabiscan device. Results: In the control group, using the Strabiscan demonstration device, small-angle latent strabismus ≤3DP was diagnosed in 83% of patients, and >3DP in 13%. In contrast, using the prismatic cover-uncover test, latent strabismus ≤3DP was diagnosed in only 13% of patients, and latent strabismus with an angle >3DP in 13% of patients. No statistically significant differences were noted in the measurements of strabismus angles made by the different methods. Conclusions: The Strabiscan demonstration device allows quick and accurate assessment of the strabismus angle. Compared to the prismatic cover-uncover test, it has a higher sensitivity for detecting low-angle latent strabismus. Measurements with the Strabiscan do not require the presence of additional co-assistants for the test.

Background: Determination of the number of pupils at risk of developing pre-myopia and selected ophthalmic parameters in a group of 1155 children aged 8. Material: Ophthalmic examinations were performed in Polish 8-year-old, /1518 individuals/; 1155 of whom presented complete data for analysis. There was a total of 554 (47.9%) girls and 602 (52.1%) boys. Examination of the anterior and posterior segment of the eye, evaluation of accommodation, convergence, heterophoria, alignment of the eyeball, muscular balance with ocular mobility in 9 directions of gaze, and spatial vision were tested. Refraction was obtained under cycloplegia. Refractions (spherical equivalent, SE). were categorized as pre-myopia (−0.50 D–+0.75 D), myopia (≤−0.5 D), emmetropia (>−0.5 D to ≤+0.5 D), mildly hyperopia (>+0.5 D to ≤+2.0 D) and hyperopia (>+2.0 D). Data analysis was performed using Statistica 13.5 software: chi-squared, Pearson’s, t-Student, and U Mann–Whitney tests. p-values of <0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: Pre-myopia was diagnosed in as many as 704 subjects (60.9%) with a similar frequency among both girls—328 (46.6%)—and boys with 376 (53.4%). Conclusions: Current data indicates that the growing group of myopic individuals in many industrialized countries is the sixth most common cause of blindness. Further research is crucial to understand the factors underlying accommodative and binocular mechanisms for myopia development and progression and to make recommendations for targeted interventions to slow the progression of myopia in a group of early school children.

Background: Prismatic cover test (PCT) is a gold standard assessment of strabismus angle, however it has a significant number of disadvantages which are eliminated in Strabiscan device. Methods: Patients with strabismus (n = 30) and a group of healthy subjects (n = 30) were given a detailed history and underwent ophthalmologic examinations (best corrected visual acuity assessment, cycloplegic autorefractometry, biomicroscopic examination of anterior and posterior part of the eye). Each patient and healthy subjects were then subjected to the PCT, and then the presence of strabismus was detected, and its angle assessed using a Strabiscan demonstrator. Statistical analysis was done with Statistica software. Results: No statistically significant differences were noted in the measurements of strabismus angles made by the differing methods. Among the control group, using the Strabiscan demonstration device, low-angle latent strabismus ≤3PD was diagnosed in 83% of patients, and >3PD in 13% of patients. Those using the PCT, on the other hand, diagnosed latent strabismus ≤3PD in only 13% of patients, and latent strabismus with an angle >3PD in 13% of patients. Conclusion: The Strabiscan demonstration device provides quick and accurate assessment of the strabismus angle.