Multisensory rehabilitation for people with ultra-low vision
Official title: Development of a Multi-sensory Rehabilitation Program for People with Ultra Low Vision
Funded at State College of Optometry · NIH-11142506 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project will see if combining sound, touch, and remaining vision helps people with ultra-low vision carry out everyday tasks more easily.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | State College of Optometry NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project start | September 30, 2021 |
| Project end | June 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $244,574 |
| NIH project number | 5R00EY033031-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11142506 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are adults with ultra-low vision—severe vision loss that still allows some functional sight but not enough to see detailed shapes or large letters at typical reading distance.
✕Less likely to help
People with normal or only mild vision loss, or those with no light perception and no usable visual input, are unlikely to benefit from this specific multisensory rehabilitation approach.
What this research studies
If you have ultra-low vision, researchers will work with you to try training that mixes auditory and tactile cues with whatever sight remains. They will use virtual reality and lab-based tasks to measure how well different activities can be done at varying levels of vision. The team will run a small pilot program of the multisensory training and then refine and test a full rehabilitation program. The goal is to create a practical program that clinicians could use to help people with severe vision loss.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the program could help people with ultra-low vision perform daily activities more independently by using sound and touch together with residual sight.
How similar studies have gone: Previous sensory substitution and low-vision training approaches have shown promise, but combining auditory and tactile cues with remaining vision in virtual-reality–based rehabilitation is relatively new and still being piloted.
Where this research is happening
-
State College of Optometry
New York, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kartha, Arathy Ganga — State College of Optometry
- Study coordinator: Kartha, Arathy Ganga
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.