Identifying visual stress during a routine eye examination

Purpose: To investigate whether the clinical tests used in routine eye examinations can identify adults whose reading rate increases with their preferred coloured overlay(s). Methods: Routine optometric tests were used to measure 73 undergraduate students’ refractive error, visual acuity, stereo-acuity, amplitude of accommodation, near point of convergence, associated heterophoria at near, colour vision and ocular motility. Participants chose an overlay or combination of overlays with colour optimal for clarity, and completed the Wilkins Rate of Reading Test with and without an overlay(s) of this colour. Results: Overall, there was a significant increase in reading speed with overlay (t(72) = −5.26, p < 0.0005). Twenty-six participants (36%) increased their reading rate by >5% with their chosen coloured overlay(s). Ten participants (14%) had a reading speed increase of >10%. The increase in reading speed was not significantly associated with any clinical finding. Conclusion: Tests which are completed in routine eye examinations did not identify those participants who benefitted from coloured overlays in terms of reading speed.