Albinism B-BCVA improves in early school years

Albinos experience an improvement in binocular best-corrected visual acuity (B-BCVA), according to an investigation in the Journal of Paediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus.

The study, headed by Dr Johanna M. Dijkstal, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, involved the investigation of B-BCVA in albino patients. The information recorded included type of albinism, B-BCVA, glasses wear, iris pigment, macular transparency grade and presence or absence of an annular reflex and melanin in the macular. Each patient was visited between the ages of 5.5 and 9 years (Visit A) and 9.5 and 14 years (Visit B) with a gap of at least 2.5 years between visits.

Visit A revealed a mean B-BCVA of 20/84 and Visit B demonstrated a mean B-BCVA of 20/61, meaning B-BCVA improved by 80%. There was no strong correlation between improvement in B-BCVA and glasses wear, iris grade, macular grade, macular melanin, and annular reflex.

However, from Visit A and Visit the team discovered a moderate correlation between B-BCVA and iris grade. The study showed that B-BCVA frequently improves in albinism in the early school years. It is said to be linked to changes in nystagmus, use of precise null point, developmental maturation, and ocular characteristics.