Glare's Causes, Consequences, and Clinical Challenges After a Century of Ophthalmic Study (2025)

Macular Pigment and Visual Performance in Glare: Benefits for Photostress Recovery, Disability Glare, and Visual Discomfort

Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, 2011

OVERVIEW OF GLARE TYPES AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH MACULAR PIGMENT OPTICAL DENSITY

Reduced visual performance due to intraocular scatter and environmental glare conditions are two of the most commonly reported symptoms in a clinical setting. Study of glare and the neural processes that underlie the phenomena have been studied since the early 19th century. This overview provides a historical perspective of glare and intraocular scatter, types and definitions, role of ophthalmic materials in glare mitigation and the role of macular pigment in glare amelioration. The 3 hypothesized roles of macular pigment (MP) to include Retinal Protection, Neural Efficiency and Optical Enhancement as well as an examination of the 3 subsets of Optical Enhancement as it related to glare reduction will also be explored. Existing literature has explored the detailed spatial and chemical properties of MP and this review will discuss how differing glare types can be affected by differing MP spatial distributions and how tailored oral supplementation of MP constituents can enhance the glare reduction benefits.

ON SENSITIVITY TO GLARE AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH MACULAR PIGMENT

CIE Proceedings, 2021

Current trends in discomfort glare research have suggested the influence of physiological parameters on individual glare perception. To this end, we hypothesize that a specific ocular physiology characteristic, namely the macular pigment (MP) in the retina, could have an influence on glare sensitivity, encouraged by recent findings from the literature that have shown that high MP levels were indicative of better visual performance. This study investigates whether a person's sensitivity to glare could be somehow correlated to their macular pigment optical density (MPOD). We measured MPOD in 56 participants and compared it with their discomfort glare thresholds, which were determined psychophysically by exposing the participants to a series of lighting conditions varying in intensity. We found that the influence of MPOD on glare sensitivity is borderline significant with small effect size but does not follow intuition. Additional data will be required to validate and refine these initial findings.

Mechanisms for discomfort glare in central vision

Investigative ophthalmology & visual science, 2015

The presence of a bright light source in the visual field can generate visual discomfort. Based on empirical observations we can predict to a reasonable degree of accuracy how uncomfortable a given lighting installation is likely to be; yet very little is known about the mechanism or physiological underpinnings that lead to visual discomfort. This study attempts to elucidate some of the underlying mechanisms by controlling the amount of light reaching the retina and by varying photometric properties of the glare source. The participants were required to view a source of light presented against a simulated residential street background in the form of uniform flashes of light of varying intensity. Discomfort-glare thresholds were estimated using a staircase procedure; the dependent variable was retinal illuminance. The size of the glare source and the luminance of the surrounding background were varied systematically. Across glare-source sizes or background luminances the discomfort-g...

Impairment of contrast sensitivity function (CSF) as a measure of disability glare

Investigative ophthalmology & visual science, 1986

Macular pigment spatial distribution effects on glare disability

Journal of Optometry, 2015

Comparison of three methods of evaluating glare

Acta Ophthalmologica, 2009

Macular pigment is associated with glare-affected visual function and central visual field loss in glaucoma

The British journal of ophthalmology, 2017

To evaluate the relationship between macular pigment optical density (MPOD) and glare disability in open-angle glaucoma. A cross-sectional analysis of baseline data (88 subjects; median age, 67 (range 36-84) years) collected during the Macular Pigment and Glaucoma Trial (ISRCTN registry number: 56985060). MPOD at 0.25°, 0.5° and 1° of retinal eccentricity was measured using customised heterochromatic flicker photometry. Mesopic contrast sensitivity with glare (mCSg), photostress recovery time (PRT) and self-reported glare symptoms were evaluated. Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography was used to analyse ganglion cell complex (GCC) and identify foveal involvement. Low spatial frequency () mCSg was significantly correlated with MPOD at 0.25°(3 cycles per degree (cpd): r=0.25, p=0.04) and 0.5° (3 cpd: r=0.23, p=0.04) of retinal eccentricity. Those with foveal GCC loss exhibited lower MPOD, had worse low spatial mCSg (1.5 cpd and 3 cpd, p=0.02 each) and prolonged PRT (p=0.02) in c...

The Accuracy of Observers'Estimates of the Effect of Glare on Nighttime Vision: Do We Exaggerate the Disabling Effects of Glare?

Mesopic Disability Glare in Stage-Two Dysfunctional Lens Syndrome

Ophthalmology and Therapy