DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW INTRAOCULAR PRESSURE MEASUREMENT DEVICE: SELF-TONOMETRY DEVICE FOR MONITORING OF INTRA-OCULAR PRESSURE (STOP) FOR GLAUCOMA

Abstract

Background Glaucoma is one of the commonest causes of blindness in the world. The majority of treatment strategies target the reduction of intraocular pressure (IOP). Currently, IOP is only measured once in the outpatient clinic by a specialist and this "snapshot" IOP is used as the representative value. Methods and Results Hence, we propose a non-contact, self-administered, reproducible IOP-measuring device which could be used by patients in the home-setting. The device makes use of proprietary sensor-array and novel machine-learning algorithms to facilitate measurement of IOP. We have conducted proof-of-concept experiments using mechanical models and cadaveric porcine eyes. The true pressure is confirmed using needle manometer. Our results showed that errors of measurement using our prototype is between 1 – 2 mmHg. Conclusions We intend to plan and conduct human clinical studies to further refine the STOP tonometer. We also proposed a Gantt chart for commercialization plans in the future.