BioFormatix Inc uses informatics and molecular biology to address complex problems in medical diagnostics, data collection, data modeling, and software development. The firm specializes in technology based upon the Visual field (VF) test, a widely used and noninvasive technique for evaluating pathology or dysfunction in the visual pathways. The VF test is one of the basic diagnostic tools of ophthalmology, especially useful for the detection of glaucoma and following its progression. The firm continues to support VFExpert products, diagnostic aid software for the early detection of glaucoma. The early detection of glaucoma is critical, since blindness from the disease is preventable in nearly all cases if the treatment is promptly administered. BioFormatix applies machine-learning approaches to the problem of glaucoma diagnosis using an automated analysis of visual field data. The company also developed VirtualEye, a lightweight, high-performance, head-mounted apparatus for the visual field test. The device allows an unprecedented freedom of movement for the head and body, minimizing stress and fatigue associated with conventional visual field testing systems. A flexible, computerized platform and state-of-the art display technology enables the system to easy be configured to accommodate emerging and future test scenarios. The device performs the equivalent of full threshold 24-2 visual field testing in two modes: manual (subjective), with patient response registered with a mouse click and visual grasp (objective), where the eye tracker senses an appropriate change in gaze as evidence of target acquisition.
