This document discusses sports vision, including visual skills important for sports like static and dynamic visual acuity, depth perception, and eye movements. It describes how vision impacts athletic performance and the relationship between vision and skilled movement. The document also outlines various tests and equipment used for evaluating visual skills and enhancing sports vision, such as the sports vision trainer, eye port, and harts charts. It emphasizes the importance of sports vision screening and training to optimize visual abilities and athletic performance.

1. UTTAR PRADESH UNIVERSITY
OF MEDICAL SCIENCE
SALAL MOHAMMAD
B.OPTOM(2ND YEAR)

2. SPORTS VISION : VISUAL
SKILLS EVALUATION AND
ENHANCEMENT

3. INTRODUCTION
 Sports vision generally refers to studies concerning sports
vision
and visual organs.
 Vision influences the capacity of the athlete to perform the
visual task.
 That’s why visual fitness just like speed, power and strength
is an important aspect for the best performance in outdoor or
indoor games.
 Good sports vision is the indicator of good visual skills.
 Actually sports vision is not only limited to 20/20 eyesight but
also a set of several skills.
 95% of all physical movement is controlled visually and that
this is the trigger mechanism for the first movement of the
athlete .

4. THE RELATIONSHIP OF VISION AND SKILLED MOVEMENT
It include 3 central processing mechanisms-
Perceptual mechanism:
 Receives information from retina for visual purpose.
 Recognizes and interprets the information.
 Selection of information.
Decision making :
 Information from the perceptual
mechanismis passed through it.
 Concerned with response selection and
strategy formation.
Effector mechanism:
 Decision mechanism selects a motor response.
 Controls and organizes the sequences of desired movement.
 Control a movement during it’s execution.
 Evaluate the final result which allows changes to be made in
the future.

5. HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE ASPECTS OF
VISION
 The perceptual mechanism made of 2
different levels of visual information.
 Hardware : involves the reception of visual
information
 Software : involves the perception of visual
inform SOFTWARE
HARDWARE
eye receives visual input ,
interprets
the input and initiates the most
appropriate motor response
Physical makeup/characterstics
of eye

6.  VISUAL SKILLS AND VARIOUS SPORTS
 Some specific visual skills are-
 Static visual acuity
 Dynamic or kinetic visual acuity
 Depth perception
 Central and peripheral awareness
 Eye movements
 Eye hand /body coordination
 Visual concentration or focus flexibility
 Colour vision
 Contrast sensitivity

7.  VISUAL SKILLS EVALUATIONS
 Why we need sports vision screening ?
 Think what happen with you on field as a
athlete when-
 If you show little performance in your specific
game after hard practice
 If you make same mistake again and again
competition
 If you have difficulty in judging ball rotation or
knowing where the ball or other players are
 If you are in sun light or difficulty in
recovering vision after looking into bright light
 After these are more situations is there any
possibility to make best performance or to
win medals or trophies

8. STATISTICS TAKEN FROM SPORTS VISON
SCREENINGS
 Statistics taken from sports vision screening
of the Olympic and junior Olympic levels
shows the visual status of different sports
persons-
 20% of athletes competing of a high level
tournament but never have a complete eye
examination
 30% had less than 20/20 vision
 25% had decreased depth perception
 26% had poor eye hand coordination for the
demand of their sports
 12% had inaccurate eye movement abilities
(tracking and able to keep their eyes on the
ball)
 25 millions cases of injuries per year in only

9. SPORTS VISION SCREENING /TESTS
ROLE OF SPORTS VISION OPTOMETRIST-
 Play a key role to determine your sports
related needs after a complete eye exam
 Evaluate how you use your brain /vision while
moving around outdoors and interacting with
other objects and players
AREAS OF WORKING
 Assessment /remediation of functional visual
insuffiencies
 Assessement of sports specific visual abilities
 Refraction compensation
 Enhancement vision training
 Consultation

10. SPORTS VISUAL SKILLS BASIC TEST
EMPLOYED IN EYE
EXAMINATION
SPECIALIZED
EQUIPMENTS/TES
TS THAT CAN BE
USED
ALL BALL
SPORTS
Ocular
alignment,ocular
motility,accomoda
tion,convergence
,stereopsis
Cover test ,pen
torch,saccadic/refixati
on test ,near point
rule,random dot
tests,oculomotor
balance test
Howell phoria
cards,brock string
flipper
accomodation test
CRICKET Anticipation(batin
g)
Hand eye
response(fielding)
Accuracy of
fixation and
binocular stability
Mallet unit Bassin anticipation
timer ,sports vision
trainer(STV)
Wayne saccadic
fixator
FOOTBAL
L
Foot eye
coordination
Peripheral
awareness
Confrontation test
,peripheral fields
Modified saccadic
fixator ,STV
Peripheral
awareness trainer
Visual skills required some popular sports and examples of test to
include or equipments to use in the sports vision evaluation

11. SPORTS VISUAL SKILLS BASIC TEST
EMPLOYED IN EYE
EXAMINATION
SPECIALIZED
EQUIPMENTS/TES
TS THAT CAN BE
USED
SAILING Ocular motility
Periphral
awareness
Pen torch
Confrontation
test,peripheral fields
Peripheral
awareness trainer
STV
SNOOKE
R
Ocular alignment
Stereopsis
Vergence control
Cover test, maddox
rod,random dot
test,mallet unit,pencil
to nose test
Eye dominance
,brock string
Vectograms and
tranaglyphs
NETBALL Depth perception
and stereopsis
Peripheral
awareness
Random dot test
Confrontation,
peripheral field
Peripheral
awareness trainer
STV

12. SPORTS VISUAL SKILLS BASIC TEST
EMPLOYED IN
EYE
EXAMINATION
SPECIALIZED
EQUIPMENTS/T
ESTS THAT CAN
BE USED
SKIING Contrast sensitivity
Dynamic visual
acuity
High and low
contrast
charts,logMAR
charts
Pelli robson
charts
DVA test
HOCKEY Dynamic visual
acuity
Hand eye
coordination
DVA test
Wayne saccadic
fixator, SVA
ATHLETICS-
TRACK AND
FIELD
Peripheral
awareness
Confrontation test
,peripheral fields
Peripheral
awareness
trainer,SVA
TENNIS Dynamic visual
acuity
Peripheral
awareness
Hand eye
coordination
Confrontation test
,peripheral fields
DVA tests
Peripheral
awareness
trainer,SVT
Wayne saccadic
fixator,SVT
BOXING Accuracy of fixation Mallet unit

13. VISUAL SKILLS
ENHANCEMENT
Optimizing visual acuity
Use of specific tint, coating and filters
Prevention to injury
Use face or eye protectors
Sports vision training
Consulatation

14. ROLE OF VISUAL APPLIANCES
1.OPTIMIZING VISUAL ACUITY
 Glasses
 Contact lens : soft or RGP
,orthokeratology
 Refractive surgery : LASEK, LASIK or
implant lenses

15. How to decide which types of correction
is needed?
 In some sports a combination of appliances
may be needed to cover a variety of
enivironmental condition and visual tasks
 The practitioner needs to discover whether
there are any recommendations or
mandatory requirements for sports eye
protection and it contact lenses or spectacles
can be born for a given sport
 Ocular health plays an integral part when
deciding whether CLs when worn for sports
 Determine the environment in which the
athlete is participating e.g dust and other
environmental factors may influences your

16. CLINICAL REASON
FOR GLASS
LENSES SPECIFICATION
Multi anti reflection
coating
Increases contrast sensitivity by improving lens
transmission and reducing surface and internal
reflection
Tints (contrast ,visible) Improves contrast sensitivity,reduce discomfort
and possibly disability glare
Scratch resistance Prolong good light transmission
Peripheral distortion
Asphetic
Lens size
Maintain peripheral awareness
Water repellent Maintain lens transmission in rain and spray
Cleaning Keeps ARC effectively ,maintain contrast
sensitivity
Fit Maintain effective power ,keeps appliance stable
,prevents vertical prismatic effects
Comfort Prevents distractions
Weight Helps to maintain fit and keeps comfortable in the
active, hot sporting situations
Protection (trauma) Built protection with polycarbonate frames and
lenses

17. VISUAL DEMANDS IN SPORTS
SPORTS DEMANDS
Cycling Near
Martial arts Near
Volley ball Distnace ,contrast,dynamic ,direction localization
Basket ball Distance
Shooting Distnace ,near ,intense demand
Hockey Distance ,dynamic ,sustained performance
Table tennis Distance ,dynamic
Tennis Distance ,dynamic
Cricket Distance ,contrast, near ,dynamic
Foot ball Distance ,direction localization ,sustained
performance
Archery Distance ,intense demand
Base ball Distance ,dynamic

18. CONTACT LENSES
SOFT CONTACT LENSES
Advantages –
 Peripheral vision
 No fog up
 Comfortable
 Day lenses are preferred
to reduce the risk of
complication
Disadvantages –
 May dry out
 Not always stable vision
 Risk of dislocation
 Not always full correction
HARD CONTACT LENSES
Advantages –
 Peripheral vision
 No fog up
 Low risk of complications
Disadvantages –
 May dry out
 High risk for corpus
alienum
 May get lost
 Not always stable vision
 Risk of dislocation
 Not very comfortable

19. BENEFITS OF CLs FOR SPORTS
 Wider field of view
 Less magnification /minification
 Less adaptation may be required
 Greater stability
 Enhanced depth perception
 Fewer aberrations
 Fewer reflections
 Not affected by fogging or a rain
 Less susceptible to dirt
 Allow protective eyewear or sunglasses to be
worn
 Protect against peripheral and oblique incident UV
 Low risk of damage to lens during wear (soft lens)

20. REFRACTIVE SURGERY
LASEK ( +2D TO -6D )
Advantages
 Peripheral vision
 Greater confidence in
vision
 Less worry about eye
problems and fluctuating
vision
 No concerns about
glasses or CLs
 Feels like ametropia
 Less risk of complications
than LASIK ,implant lense
etc.
Disadvantages
 Reduced contrast
sensitivity
 Risk of glare and halo’s
LASIK (+3D TO -8D )
Advantages
 Peripheral vision
 Greater confidence in
vision
 No concerns about
glasses or CLs
 Feels like ametropia
Disadvantages
 Reduced contrast
sensitivity
 Risk of glare and halo’s
 Dry eyes
 Irreversible
 Risk of complication : flap
dislocation

21. PHAKIC IMPLANT LENS (+10D TO -20D )
Advantage
 Peripheral vision
 Greater confidence in vision
 No concern about glasses
or CLs
 Feel like ametropia
 No reduction of contrast
sensitivity
Disadvantages
 Risk of complication
 After phakic implant lens hockey with eye
protection advisable

22. ROLE OF TINTS, COATINGS, AND FILTERS IN
ENHANCEMENT OF SPORTS VISION
TINTS:
 Different color tints are prescribed to enhance
vision and aid visual comfort
 Dispensing tints and coating is a careful visual
task analysis to determine the ambient light levels
and conditions ( artificial or natural )
 Tinted sunglasses are extremely important to
reduce glare and protect against harmful radiation
 Usual range is 20% to 80% transmission
 There are different sun protection catogaries
defined by the british standard institute and there
ere many sports specific sunglasses available
today
 Most recently sports specific tints have been
incorporated into contact lenses
 There is no hard and fast rule as to the color of the
tint to use for a given sports

23. MIRROR COATING
 It limits glare and increases absorption
 Reduces IR reducing heat build up
 Sports application
 Snow sports
 Water sports
 Running /cycling
ANTI REFLECTION COATING
 ARC minimizes the back surface reflections
 Reduces the ghost images which interrupt the
target
 Sports application
 Racquet sports e.g. tennis ,badminton, squash
and table tennis etc.

24. FILTERS
PHOTOCHROMIC FILTERS
 Transmission characteristics
actively change
 Usually neutral or brown tint
 Sports application
 Changing light levels e.g. golf
, tennis etc.
REDRANGE FILTERS
 Enhance object in the red
spectrum
 Sports application
 Orange clay shooting ,clay
tennis
 Skiing (contrast change or
reflected light )
NEUTRAL GREY FILTER
 Filters wavelength equally
 Keeps colour more naturally
 Sports application
 When subtle color
defferences matter
 Golf mountaineering ,skiing
YELLOW RANGE FILTERS
 Transmits only longer
wavelengths
 May enhance contrast
defference
 Eliminate some instance
glare
 Sports application
 Shooting ,snow sports,
diving, flying, tennis,
baseball, golf.

25. PROTECTION TO INJURY
 2.3% of all eye injuries that attend a hospital
accident and emergency dept. but as many ,41%
of requiring hospital admission
 In the UK. Football, hockey, and table tennis is
the most common cause of sports related injuries
accounting of 12% of cases
 Most common of periorbital ,corneal, hyphaema
and trauma to the posterior segment of the eye
and corneal and conjunctival injuries
 25% of the injuries are to the head or face e.g.
eyelid laceration , corneal abrasion, orbital
fractures ,conjunctiva and others
 Squash has been recognized as a particular risk
of eye injury as the squash ball is the perfect size
to fit within the orbit
 The use of polycarbonate lenses for ocular
protection are the first choice because of high
impact resistance and lightest lens material

27. SPORTS VISION TRAININGS
 An area in sports science i.e. often
overlooked but can draumatically impact an
athlete or team performance
 No competition can be mastered successfully
without the players’s capability to use their
visual skills
 If the visual system is well trained , it is these
hundredths of a second that can fall in your
favor as you are able to process what you are
seeing slightly quicker than your opponent
 This can be the difference b/w winning or loosing
,coming first or second or scoring the match wining
points
 Safety and best performance is the primary concern
in any sports and all visual trainings are done for
prevention and recovery own the field
 It can give you the edge over your opponent

28. VISION TRAINING EQUIPMENTS AND METHODS
 The training programme was designed with the following
equipment
1.SPORTS VISION TRAINER
 An advance visual motor training device uses multicolored 64
emitting bottons on a 1.20 meters ,1.20 meters grey board
and it’s height is adjustable
 Every training session is designed performed analyzed and
stored by software
 To enhance eye hand coordination ,visual and motor reaction
abilities and reception the periphery
 Training on the SVT 3 times a week for 5 weeks in 30 minute
sessions
2.EYE PORT
 Used to train all aspect of the gaze motor activity
 The eyes have to follow flashed red and blue light emitting
diodes
 This cause the muscles to stretch in every possible direction
at different at different speeds and in predictable or random
order
3.KANON BALL MACHINE

29. 4.HARTS CHARTS
 These charts are tables with letters in different sizes that are
fixed to the wall
 The distance between the charts was steadily increased from
training session to sessions
 The task was to localize as possible as a given oder on the
different tables in use
5.ROTATOR
 A computer controlled rotating disk with alternating rotating
direction and gradual speed regulation
 On the disk letters in different sizes are applied which have to
be localized and followed from a distance of 1.50 in multiple
requirements profiles corresponding to the daily training
programme
6.VISION PERFORMANCE ENHANCEMENT PROGRAMME
 A special vision training software for athletes which trained
various visual skills
 Used for central and peripheral awareness ,saccadic fixation
,reaction time ,scanning tracking and stereopsis etc.

30. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
REFERENCES:
1. http://www.Allaboutvision.com
2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.com/pubmed
3. http://www.covd.org/?page=sports
4. http://www.ridgefieldfamilyeyecare.com/new-Generic-page235828
5. Jameel Rizwana H;21.sports vision;textbook of ocupational optometry PP
Santanam;page no.-310-327
6. “sports vision protocol” by the Hong Kong hockey club and sports medicine and health
science centre
7. Martin Cordall- performance ,vision and sports ,module-2 by vision care institute
8. Geraint Griffith – The clinical applications of sports vision appliances by sports vision
journal
9. Grant Van Velden-Sports vision and decision making by centre for human performance
science,Stellen Bosch University ,America
10. Nerman Phil Einhorn –Article on “testing and improving sports vision”
11. Pierre Elmurr (2010) –Articles on “introduction on sports vision”
12. Sebastian Schwab and Denial Memment- (1 dec. 2012) “perceptual training with youth
hockey players (12 -16 years)” ,journal of sports science and medicine
13. “Visual training and sports performance “ (volume-28, nov.2005) ,news letter by
Australian sports commission
14. Luisa Quevedo and Joan Soal (1995)-“visual training programme applied to precision
shooting “by pubmed