Perimetry you can trust ...

OCTOPUS

G1 Examination program

Phase and Stage concept

Learn more about perimetry - with the Book

"Automated Perimetry" - Visual Field Digest 5th edition

OCTOPUS perimetry is based on features that help save time and gain reliability.
Among these are interstimulus times that adapt to the response times of the patient and
100% fixation control to ensure only stimuli are presented and evaluated that have been
issued to an open eye that looked into the right direction. However, the roots for
OCTOPUS perimetry go much deeper.

G1 Examination program

The program 32 was a standard OCTOPUS set in 1976 out of technical reasons: A test
pattern was to be found that didn’t take longer than 25 minutes including the retest of 10
locations. The calculated 76 locations were distributed in an equidistant pattern grid of
6° resolution. Thus the classical "off axis" central program was created.

In 1987 Professor Flammer et al. introduced the G1 Glaucoma program that’s test
locations have been specially placed to be in sensitive spots and prevent
misinterpretation. This resulted in a program with 59 testlocations in the central 30° with
specialities as:

• More concentrated test locations in the center to find paracentral scotomas

(foveal resolution of 2.8° compared to 4.2° in program 32)
• no test locations on the horizontal and vertical axis except the central point
• to avoid pseudo scotomas caused by correction lens edges the 59 central test
patterns are within 26° and not the traditional 30°
• 14 peripheral test locations with a concentration on the nasal side (to better
detect nasal steps) are added if information outside the central 30° are
requested without prolonging the test duration too much. In this case the
complete G1 has 73 test locations. If only the center 30° are tested this
program is also called G2X as in the OCTOPUS 300series and 1-2-3.

As can be seen, altough G1 comes from Glaucoma, it is just as well suited as a

generally applicable program. This is why it has become the Standard in OCTOPUS
perimetry over 10 years ago
 Distribution of test locations in 32 pattern Distribution of test locations in G1 pattern (to 30°)
Phase and Stage concept

The examination is not a fixed procedure as would be in example A. It much more

allows to interrupt, adapt or finish the test at predefined break points.

As an example take the G1 program. It consists of 59 locations in the center 30°.

These test locations are split in 4 groups. The first group of locations, considered the
most important concerning the outcome of the examination, is measured first, followed
by group 2, 3 and 4. These groups are named stages) (B).
After each stage the operator can interrupt the exam to continue at a later time or even
save and print the result (D). You still get indices and a result at hand if the patient
should not be able to complete the program, because every complete stage is a
complete set of fully tested thresholds that contribute to the result ) (C).
Phases (E) add additional flexibility in the examination program. If a program consists of
central and peripheral test locations, they are split into different phases. After getting the
result from one phase the doctor can choose whether to a) retest the same area to get
short time fluctuations, b) test peripheral locations to get qualitative information or c)
test the periphery quantitatively.

This proceeding allows to get the necessary amount of information in a way the that can
be well adapted to the patients condition.

Allocation of G1 test locations according to stage inside 30°