An investigation into the measurement properties of the King-Devick Eye Tracking system

Abstract

Objectives Eye tracking has been gaining increasing attention as a possible assessment and monitoring tool for concussion. The King-Devick test (K-DT) was expanded to include an infrared video-oculography-based eye tracker (K-D ET). Therefore, the aim was to provide evidence on the reliability of the K-D ET system under an exercise condition. Methods Participants (N = 61; 26 male, 35 female; age range 19-25) were allocated to an exercise or sedentary group. Both groups completed a baseline K-D ET measurement and then either two 10-min exercise or sedentary interventions with repeated K-D ET measurements between interventions. Results The test-retest reliability of the K-D ET ranged from good to excellent for the different variables measured. The mean ± SD of the differences for the total number of saccades was 1.04 ± 4.01 and there was an observable difference (p = 0.005) in the trial number. There were no observable differences for the intervention (p = 0.768), gender (p = 0.121) and trial (p = 0.777) for average saccade’s velocity. The mean ± SD of the difference of the total fixations before and after intervention across both trials was 1.04 ± 3.63 and there was an observable difference in the trial number (p = 0.025). The mean ± SD of the differences for the Inter-Saccadic Interval and the fixation polyarea before and after intervention across both trials were 1.86 ± 22.99 msec and 0.51 ± 59.11 mm2 and no observable differences for the intervention, gender and trial. Conclusion The results provide evidence on the reliability of the K-D ET, and the eye-tracking components and demonstrate the relationship between completion time and other variables of the K-D ET system. This is vital as the use of the K-DT may be increasing and the combination of the K-DT and eye tracking as one single package highlights the need to specifically measure the reliability of this combined unit.