A novel smartphone App to support the clinical practice of pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus. The validation of visual acuity tests. (preprint)

Purpose This study aims to describe the TreC Oculistica novel smartphone App that facilitated the clinical practice of pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus during the COVID-19 pandemic and to report on the validation of visual acuity tests in a home setting. Methods The Trec Oculistica smartphone App was prescribed to eligible patients at the Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus Clinic, Ophthalmology Unit of Rovereto Hospital between September 2020 and March 2022. Four key indicators were identified for monitoring visual and visuo-motor functions remotely: visual acuity, ocular motility, head posture, and color vision. Clinicians selected few mobile applications (iOS, Android) and printable materials within the Trec Oculistica App: the Snellen Chart Visual Acuity App, the 9Gaze App, the eyeTilt App, the Color Blind test App, the LEA Symbols pdf, and the Snellen Chart pdf. All patients, aged 4 and older, were screened at home for visual acuity at 3 meters and later in the clinic (LEA Symbols cabinet or Snellen computerized optotype).The 9Gaze, the eyeTilt, and the Color Blind test Apps were only recommended to a subset of patients based on clinical suspicion or diagnosis. The Wilcoxon signed rank sum test and Weighted Cohen's kappa coefficient were applied to compare pairs of scores from different settings. Results The Trec Oculistica App was downloaded and activated by 97 patients or their caregiver. 40 patients were tested at home using the 9Gaze App, 7 used the eyeTilt App, and 11 used the Color-Blind test App. Families reported that all the Apps were easy and intuitive to use; clinicians reported that measurements were reliable. 82 eyes of 41 patients (mean age 5.2 years, SD ± 0.4, range 4.4-6.1) were tested for visual acuity using the self-administered LEA Symbols pdf . 92 eyes of 46 patients (mean age 11.6 years, SD ± 5.2, range 6-35) were evaluated using the self-administered Snellen Chart Visual Acuity App or the Snellen Chart pdf. Home median visual acuity score was statistically different from that registered in clinical setting for both the LEA Symbols pdf (P-value 0.0074) and the Snellen Chart App and pdf (P-value 0.0001). The strength of agreement was 0.12 (slight) for the LEA Symbols pdf, 0.50 (moderate) for the Snellen Chart Visual Acuity App, and 0.69 (substantial) for the Snellen Chart pdf. Conclusions The novel TreC Oculistica smartphone App was a useful tool for facilitating the clinical practice of pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the follow-up of strabismus patients and patients with suspected inherited retinal diseases, the 9Gaze, eyeTilt, and Color Blind test applications were deemed to be intuitive and easy to use by families, and were considered reliable by clinicians. In a home setting, visual acuity tested by means of Snellen Charts was moderately congruent with the in-office examination. On the contrary, agreement was poor in younger children tested with the LEA Symbols pdf.

Pregnancy outcomes in Italy during COVID-19 pandemic: a population-based cohort study. (preprint)

Objective: To compare the estimates of preterm birth (PTB; 22-36 weeks gestational age, GA) and stillbirth rates during COVID-19 pandemic in Italy with those recorded in the three previous years. Design. A population-based cohort study of liveborn and stillborn infants was conducted using data from Regional Health Systems and comparing the pandemic period (March 1st, 2020-March 31st, 2021, N= 362,129) to an historical period (January 2017- February 2020, N=1,117,172). The cohort covered 84.3% of the births in Italy. Methods. Logistic regressions were run in each Region and meta-analyses were performed centrally. We used an interrupted time series regression analysis to study the trend of preterm births from 2017 to 2021. Main Outcome Measures. The primary outcomes were PTB and stillbirths. Secondary outcomes were late PTB (32-36 weeks’ GA), very PTB (<32 weeks’ GA), and extreme PTB (<28 weeks’ GA), overall and stratified into singleton and multiples. Results. The pandemic period compared with the historical one was associated with a reduced risk for PTB (Odds Ratio: 0.90; 95% Confidence Interval, CI: 0.87, 0.93), late PTB (0.91; 0.87, 0.94), very PTB (0.87; 0.84, 0.91), and extreme PTB (0.88; 0.82, 0.94). In multiples, point estimates were not very different, but had wider CIs. No association was found for stillbirths (1.01; 0.90, 1.13). A linear decreasing trend in PTB rate was present in the historical period, with a further reduction after the lockdown. Conclusions We demonstrated a decrease in PTB rate after the introduction of COVID-19 restriction measures, without an increase in stillbirths.