DIAGNOSING AND REMEDIATING COGNITIVE DEFICITS INVOLVING ATTENTION, SEQUENTIAL PROCESSING, READING, SPEED OF PROCESSING, AND NAVIGATION

• US 20100253905A1
• Filed: 04/05/2010
• Published: 10/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Teri A. Lawton
• Original Assignee: Teri A. Lawton
• Inventors: Lawton, Teri A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,979,263 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 351/203
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 3/022 for testing contrast sensitivity
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 3/032 Devices for presenting test symbols or characters, e.g. test chart projectors A61B3/036 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61H 5/00 Exercisers for the eyes
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/00 Teaching not covered by other main groups of this subclass teaching or practice apparatus for gun-aiming or gun-laying F41G3/26

Abstract

Cognitive deficits involving attention, sequential processing, reading, speed of processing, and navigation may be diagnosed and remediated in a subject by respectively measuring and improving contrast sensitivity for motion discrimination of the subject. A background may be displayed with a contrast and temporal frequency and either single, or multiple, higher spatial frequencies that may repeat over a wider area than the individual frequency components. A test window may be superimposed over the background, and includes a test pattern with a contrast and a spatial frequency and a temporal frequency The subject may provide a signal indicative of the direction the subject believes the test pattern moved. In response to this signal, the contrast of the test pattern, the spatial frequency of the background, the spatial frequency of the test pattern, or the temporal frequency may be modified, either by increasing or decreasing its respective value.

Claims

1. Computer-readable storage media containing computer readable code which, when loaded into a computer system having a processing system and a user interface including a display, causes a method to be implemented which helps remediate a cognitive defect of a subject, the method comprising in the order recited:

displaying to the subject on the display;

a first background which includes a pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion; and

a first test pattern within the boundaries of the first background, the first test pattern including a moving pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion;

receiving a communication from the subject through the user interface indicating the direction in which the first test pattern appears to the subject to have been moved;

repeating the displaying and the receiving steps a plurality of times while changing the contrast of the first test pattern;

determining the contrast threshold level of the subject based on the accuracy of the communications received from the subject about the direction during the repeated receiving steps;

displaying to the subject on the display;

a second background which includes a pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion at multiple spatial frequencies; and

a second test pattern within the boundaries of the second background, the second test pattern including a moving pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion;

receiving a communication from the subject through the user interface indicating the direction in which the second test pattern appears to the subject to have been moved;

repeating the displaying and the receiving steps associated with the second background and the second test pattern a plurality of times while changing the contrast of the second test pattern; and

determining the contrast threshold level of the subject based on the accuracy of the communications received from the subject about the direction during the repeated receiving steps associated with the second background and the second test pattern.

2. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1 further comprising changing the contrast of the first background during the method.

3. The computer-readable storage media of claim 2 wherein the contrast of the first background does not exceed 20% during the method.

4. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1 further comprising changing the contrast of the second background during the method.

5. The computer-readable storage media of claim 4 wherein the contrast of the second background does not exceed 20% during the method.

6. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1 wherein the second test pattern has a single spatial frequency and wherein each of the multiple spatial frequencies of the second background are a harmonic of the spatial frequency of the second test pattern.

7. The computer-readable storage media of claim 1 wherein the contrast of the first and the second test patterns does not exceed 10% during the method.

8. Computer-readable storage media containing computer readable code which, when loaded into a computer system having a processing system and a user interface including a display, causes a method to be implemented which helps remediate a cognitive defect of a subject, the method comprising in the order recited:

displaying to the subject on the display;

a first background which includes a pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion; and

a first test pattern within the boundaries of the first background, the first test pattern including a moving pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion;

receiving a communication from the subject through the user interface indicating the direction in which the first test pattern appears to the subject to have been moved;

repeating the displaying and the receiving steps a plurality of times while changing the contrast of the first test pattern;

determining the contrast threshold level of the subject based on the accuracy of the communications received from the subject about the direction during the repeated receiving steps;

displaying to the subject on the display;

a second background which includes a pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion; and

a second test pattern which has a temporal frequency that is higher than the temporal frequency of the first test pattern within the boundaries of the second background, the second test pattern including a moving pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion;

receiving a communication from the subject through the user interface indicating the direction in which the second test pattern appears to the subject to have been moved;

repeating the displaying and the receiving steps associated with the second background and the second test pattern a plurality of times while changing the contrast of the second test pattern; and

determining the contrast threshold level of the subject based on the accuracy of the communications received from the subject about the direction during the repeated receiving steps associated with the second background and the second test pattern.

9. The computer-readable storage media of claim 8 wherein the temporal frequency of both test patterns does not exceed 30 Hz during the method.

10. The computer-readable storage media of claim 8 wherein the contrast of the first and the second test patterns does not exceed 10% during the method.

11. Computer-readable storage media containing computer readable code which, when loaded into a computer system having a processing system and a user interface including a display, causes a method to be implemented which helps remediate a cognitive defect of a subject, the method comprising in the order recited:

displaying to the subject on the display;

a background which includes a moving pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion; and

a test pattern which includes a moving pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion, the test pattern being displayed within the boundaries of the background;

receiving a communication from the subject through the user interface indicating the direction in which the test pattern appears to the subject to have been moved;

repeating the displaying and the receiving steps a plurality of times while changing the contrast of the test pattern; and

determining the contrast threshold level of the subject based on the accuracy of the communications received from the subject about the direction during the repeated receiving steps.

12. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11 wherein the contrast of the background is approximately equal to the contrast of test pattern during each displaying step.

13. The computer-readable storage media of claim 11 wherein the contrast of the test pattern does not exceed 10% during the method.

14. Computer-readable storage media containing computer readable code which, when loaded into a computer system having a processing system and a user interface including a display, causes a method to be implemented which helps remediate a cognitive defect of a subject, the method comprising in the order recited:

displaying to the subject;

a background which includes a pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion; and

a test pattern which includes a moving pattern which has a lighter portion and a darker portion and which moves in at least two discontinuous steps, the test pattern being displayed within the boundaries of the background;

receiving a communication from the subject through the user interface indicating the direction the test pattern appears to the subject to have been moved during each step;

repeating the displaying and the receiving steps a plurality of times while changing the contrast of the first test pattern; and

determining the contrast threshold level of the subject based on the accuracy of the communications received from the subject about the direction during the repeated receiving steps.

15. Computer-readable storage media of claim 14 wherein the test pattern moves in the same direction during each step.

16. Computer-readable storage media of claim 14 wherein the test pattern moves in the opposite direction during each step.

17. The computer-readable storage media of claim 14 wherein the contrast of the test pattern does not exceed 10% during the method.