Cerebral Visual Impairment: a new bedside-friendly eye-tracking plus neuropsychology test kit
Official title: Clinical Neuropsychological Assessment Combined with Mobile Eye Tracking to Inform Diagnosis in Cerebral Visual Impairment
Funded at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary · NIH-11343512 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A small study will combine quick brain-based visual tests with mobile eye tracking to better diagnose cerebral visual impairment in children.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | July 1, 2026 |
| Project end | June 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $467,277 |
| NIH project number | 1R21EY038960-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11343512 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children with suspected cerebral visual impairment or related visuoperceptual processing difficulties.
✕Less likely to help
Children without CVI or unrelated eye conditions may not benefit from this testing battery.
What this research studies
This project will create and test a bedside battery that measures how kids visually process meaning, attention, and visuomotor tasks. It uses simple neuropsychology checks alongside mobile eye-tracking to capture patterns that standard eye exams miss. The team will compare results from CVI kids to neurotypical peers to build normative data. The goal is to improve diagnostic clarity and guide personalized rehabilitation strategies.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, clinicians could diagnose CVI more accurately and tailor therapies to each child’s visuoperceptual strengths and challenges.
How similar studies have gone: Earlier research supports using multimodal behavioral tests and eye tracking to reveal processing deficits in CVI; this study extends that work with a standardized battery.
Where this research is happening
-
Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Merabet, Lotfi — Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary
- Study coordinator: Merabet, Lotfi
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Risk profile to identify cerebral visual impairment in children
A pediatric-focused study will use existing medical records to identify risk factors and protective factors for cerebral visual impairment to help doctors screen at-risk infants earlier.
-
Understanding why prematurity affects vision and how to prevent it
Aims to understand how early eye development goes wrong in premature babies to prevent vision problems and nearsightedness.
-
Higher-level vision problems in cerebral visual impairment
This project looks at why people with cerebral visual impairment (CVI) have trouble finding objects, navigating busy scenes, and using vision to guide movement.
-
Understanding how ableism affects the health of children with visual impairments
This study looks at how negative attitudes and barriers in society affect the health of children who are blind or visually impaired, especially those from underrepresented communities, and it aims to understand their experiences to help improve their well-being.
-
Understanding Vision Problems in Premature Babies
This project aims to understand why premature babies often develop vision problems and nearsightedness.
-
Using eye tracking to understand visual impairment in children
This study is looking at how eye tracking can help us understand how kids with cortical visual impairment see things, so we can learn more about their vision and find better ways to help them.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.