The Education, Screening, and Referral Practices of Pediatricians Surrounding Cerebral/Cortical Visual Impairment

Introduction The timely recognition of pediatric cerebral/cortical visual impairment (CVI) often depends on appropriate screening and referral practices. The purpose of this study was to evaluate pediatricians' CVI education levels, visual dysfunction screening and referral practices, and potential use of hypothetical screening tools of varying lengths. The findings were intended to provide new insights into CVI screening among pediatricians and inform the development of more effective CVI screening tools. Methods A 60-question survey comprising multiple-choice, select-all-that-apply, Likert-type, and free-response questions was developed. The questions assessed pediatricians' general practice information, CVI education, visual dysfunction screening and referral practices, and the intended use of theoretical screening tools of varying lengths. The survey was distributed individually via email to all 396 pediatricians in Nebraska. Eighty-nine responses were analyzed. Results Our study revealed low levels of CVI education and awareness among respondents, along with limited visual dysfunction screening during many visits for children at risk for CVI. At the same time, many respondents expressed strong interest in additional CVI education if it were available. Respondents reported greater intended use of hypothetical screening tools requiring no more than two minutes to administer. The majority of respondents also reported being somewhat or highly likely to use a hypothetical mobile screening application described in the survey. Conclusions Increasing CVI education for pediatricians may be warranted, and developing brief, practical CVI screening tools may improve their acceptability among pediatricians. These results may provide a framework for the future development of such tools; however, future studies are needed to determine whether these approaches translate into increased clinical screening and earlier diagnosis of CVI.