Novel tactile bottle neck adaptor facilitates eye drop adherence for patients with visual impairment

News
Article

The adaptor was tested by low-vision patients and participants with simulated visual impairment

An elderly person self-administers an eye drop. Image credit: ©Bonsales – stock.adobe.com

The adaptors were designed to be placed on the medication bottle necks, and had protrusions with cube or sphere endings. Image credit: ©Bonsales – stock.adobe.com

A novel tactile three-dimensional bottle ring adaptor, Ring-IT, developed to improve the identification and dosing frequency of eye drops for low-vision patients, was found to be efficacious in this patient population,1 according to first author Praveena K Gupta, PhD. She is associate professor, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Texas.

This new device addresses a challenge commonly faced by patients with low vision, namely, adhering to dosing frequency when managing multiple eye drop medication bottles.

In a study to test how well the ring adaptor worked, Dr Gupta and colleagues conducted a two-phase study, first in healthy subjects and then then in visually impaired patients. The adaptors that were designed to be placed on the medication bottle necks had either one, two or three protrusions with cube or sphere endings.

Ring-IT was designed using a 3D-printed model of a rigid plastic ring clip, and manufactured at Maker Health Space Medical Fabrication Laboratory at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

In phase one, 20 healthy subjects experienced 20/200 low vision in a vision simulator. In phase two, 26 visually impaired patients with 20/70 or worse vision were randomised to six combinations of varying protrusions and shapes on the bottle necks, and were tasked with identifying the shapes and protrusion during different presentations. The patients’ responses and time to identify the bottle neck characteristics were recorded.

The investigators reported that in phase one, 98.3% of subjects correctly identified the number of protrusions, the mean time to which was 4.5±6.1 seconds. The cubes and spheres were identified correctly, respectively, 91.7% and 73.3% of the time (average identification times, 9.9±7.6 and 10.9±9.0 seconds).

In phase two, 92.3% of subjects correctly identified the number of protrusions (mean identification time, 6.0±3.0 seconds. The patients’ success rates with identifying the cubes and spheres were 78.2% and 74.4%, respectively; average identification time, 7.5±4.8 and 8.5±5.6 seconds, respectively.

The researchers concluded, “Ring-IT was identified with accuracy and speed by both low-vision simulated subjects, and by patients with true limited visual capabilities. These tactile bottle neck ring adaptors can be used as an assistive low-vision aid device and may increase eye drop regimen adherence in visually impaired patients.”

The researchers believe that their study “holds breakthrough potential to catalyse a shift in clinical practice, providing a practical tool to enhance topical eye drop adherence in patients with visual impairment.”

“This innovation could have a profound impact on both patient care and policy considerations,” they concluded.

Reference

1. Gupta PK, Ishihara R, Zhao Z, et al. Novel tactile bottle neck adaptor facilitates eye drop adherence in visually impaired patients. BMJ Open Ophthalmol. 2023;8:e001462. doi:10.1136/bmjophth-2023-001462

Newsletter

Join ophthalmologists across Europe—sign up for exclusive updates and innovations in surgical techniques and clinical care.

Recent Videos
Christine Curcio, PhD, of the University of Alabama at Birmingham Heersink School of Medicine, shares histology update and revised nomenclature for OCT with Sheryl Stevenson of the Eye Care Network and Ophthalmology Times
SriniVas R. Sadda, MD, FARVO, shares key points from his retina presentation at the International SPECTRALIS Symposium
Robert Sergott, MD, describes fluorescence lifetime imaging ophthalmoscopy (FLIO) and the International SPECTRALIS Symposium – And Beyond (ISS) in Heidelberg, Germany.
Rayaz Malik, MBChB, PhD, a professor of medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine - Qatar, spoke with Ophthalmology Times Europe about his presentation. It's titled "An eye on neurodegenerative diseases: Challenging the dogma" at the International SPECTRALIS Sympsoium. In conversation with Hattie Hayes, Ophthalmology Times Europe
Anat Loewenstein, MD, describes her presentation on remote imaging for age-related macular degeneration and geographic atrophy at the International SPECTRALIS Symposium, in conversation with Hattie Hayes of Ophthalmology Times Europe
Tyson Brunstetter, OD, PhD, a US Navy Aerospace Optometrist at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, shares key takeaways from his keynote at the International SPECTRALIS Symposium (ISS)
Rayaz Malik, MBChB, PhD, shares his presentation, titled An eye on neurodegenerative diseases: Challenging the dogma, at this year's International SPECTRALIS Symposium
At the Retina World Congress, Siegfried Priglinger, MD, speaks about ensuring the best outcomes for preschool-aged patients
At the 2025 ASCRS meeting, Robert Ang, MD said small aperture IOLs can benefit all patients, especially those with complex corneas or who have undergone previous corneal refractive surgery
Viha Vig, MBChB graduate student at the University of Auckland, New Zealand, discusses her poster presentation on the relationship between mitochondiral disease, Alzheimer disease, and other types of dementia.
© 2025 MJH Life Sciences

All rights reserved.