Critical Assessment of an Ocular Photoscreener.

PURPOSE: To determine the accuracy of the PlusoptiX A12 photoscreener (PlusoptiX, Inc., Atlanta, GA) in detecting amblyopia or ambylogenic risk factors in pediatric patients in Nebraska.

METHODS: Using the PlusoptiX A12 photoscreener, data were collected from pediatric patients seen at a single pediatric ophthalmology practice. Each patient was screened using the device and also received a comprehensive ophthalmic examination. The results of the PlusoptiX A12 photoscreener were compared to the gold standard, comprehensive ophthalmic examination findings. The assessment of amblyopia or amblyogenic risk factors in the patients was based on the updated American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (AAPOS) referral criteria guidelines.

RESULTS: Data were collected from 219 consecutive pediatric patients (438 eyes) during the 3-month study period. Among the patients, 87 (40%) children were determined to have amblyopia or ambylogenic risk factors after the comprehensive pediatric ophthalmology examination based on the AAPOS guidelines. The PlusoptiX A12 photoscreener was found to have a sensitivity of 93.02%, specificity of 84.96%, false-positive rate of 9.13%, false-negative rate of 2.74%, positive predictive value of 80.00%, and negative predictive value of 94.96%.

CONCLUSIONS: The PlusoptiX A12 photoscreener is viable and comparable to various commercially available devices in the detection of refractive amblyogenic risk factors based on the Nebraska pediatric patient population. Future studies may show increased sensitivity by combining the use of the PlusoptiX A12 photoscreener with an alternate cover test. [J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus. 2018;55(3):194-199.].