Edmonton VR software helps diabetes patients learn about vision loss

Dorothy Nelson's vision in herleft eye started to blur 11 years ago.

As she searched for answers to explain the sudden vision loss, what neither Nelson nor her doctor considered at the time was the life-altering risk of her Type 1 diabetes.

By the time she was properly diagnosed with diabetic retinopathy, she could no longer see out of her left eye.

Determined to help other diabetics, she volunteered herself as a patient research partner for a virtual reality module created by Edmonton-based developer, KOVR.

The Stratos module gives users a virtual look through the eyes of someone with diabetic retinopathy, a disease caused by complications from diabetes.

"This tool, it's only one of many tools that are out there. But, it's a great way to start. Diabetics or even just someone new in diagnosis need to understand just how serious the complications can be," she told Edmonton AM.

The good news is most cases of the disease are preventable, says Dr. Matthew Tennant, a clinical ophthalmology professor at the University of Alberta. But he says education is key.

"If you can educate a person to be seen on an annual basis and also to really understand the symptoms and signs of diabetic retinopathy are for them, then potentially we can see them early, potentially treat them and then eliminate the risk of vision loss," he said.

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Diabetic retinopathy is caused by damage to blood vessels in the retinafrom high blood sugar levels. It can start out with minor symptoms, such as the patient noticing floaters in the eye, and then progress quickly. An individual can find themselves with irreversible vision loss, and in some cases, blindness.

The made-in-Edmonton VR technology is intended to help people identify those early signs, before the disease progresses into a severe case. Aaron Clifford, lead developer and designer on the educational module, said he was intrigued to use VR for educational purposes.

"The idea of it was just so fascinating," he said.

"To be able to use virtual reality to change your perception which is really what it's all about. And so, we just dove right in and started experimenting with what was possible."

According to Diabetes Canada, diabetic retinopathy is the most common cause of legal blindness in people of working age. Finding and treating diabetic retinopathy early can reduce the risk of blindness by 95 percent, according to theNational Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

When Nelson first noticed something was wrong with her eye, she said the doctors misdiagnosed it as cataract, a clouding in the lens of the eye that leads to a decrease in vision.

"He didn't figure out that it was retinopathy," she said.

Tennant, the ophthalmologist, says the VR tool will not only educate patients but also healthcare providers.

"Pretty much, any eye disease where there are any kind of visual symptoms, that it's perfect for virtual reality because you could create a simulation for exactly what a patient may go on to actually experience themselves," he said.

"I would say for training purposes, education purposes, virtual reality really is the future."