Volume 4, Number 4, Article 8, Pages 322-328 doi:10.1167/4.4.8 http://journalofvision.org/4/4/8/ ISSN 1534-7362
Metrics of optical quality derived from wave aberrations predict visual performance
Jason D. Marsack
College of Optometry, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
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Larry N. Thibos
School of Optometry, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
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Raymond A. Applegate
College of Optometry, University of Houston, Houston, TX, USA
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Abstract

Wavefront-guided refractive surgery and custom optical corrections have reduced the residual root mean squared (RMS) wavefront error in the eye to relatively low levels (typically on the order of 0.25 μm or less over a 6-mm pupil, a dioptric equivalent of 0.19 D). It has been shown that experimental variation of the distribution of 0.25 μm of wavefront error across the pupil can cause variation in visual acuity of two lines on a standard logMAR acuity chart. This result demonstrates the need for single-value metrics other than RMS wavefront error to quantify the effects of low levels of aberration on acuity. In this work, we present the correlation of 31 single-value metrics of optical quality to high-contrast visual acuity for 34 conditions where the RMS wavefront error was equal to 0.25 μm over a 6-mm pupil. The best metric, called the visual Strehl ratio, accounts for 81% of the variance in high-contrast logMAR acuity.

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History
Received October 1, 2004; published April 23, 2004
Citation
Marsack, J. D., Thibos, L. N., & Applegate, R. A. (2004). Metrics of optical quality derived from wave aberrations predict visual performance. Journal of Vision, 4(4):8, 322-328, http://journalofvision.org/4/4/8/, doi:10.1167/4.4.8.
Keywords
aberration, metrics, visual performance, wavefront, Zernike
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