Background: Flicker light is an easy method to test sensory function after stress. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of flicker stress on temporal contrast sensitivity in healthy controls and patients with glaucomatous alteration of the optic disk.

Methods: A commercially available full-field stimulator (Retiport, Roland Consult) equipped with white LEDs was modified to perform psychophysical tests. The patients underwent measurements of the recovery time interval from cessation of flicker stress until recognition of a pregiven flicker contrast after photo stress. In addition, we studied contrast sensitivity with a continuous flickering target and with a flicker burst protocol avoiding adaptation to prevailing flicker. All tests were performed at a constant retinal illumination and at a frequency of 37 Hz for provocation as well as for contrast sensitivity tests. Methods: Normal healthy controls (40), "preperimetric" (62), and "perimetric" (52) open-angle glaucoma patients were studied. Exclusion criteria were age lower than 31 years, visual acuity under 0.6, and perimetric mean defect more than 9.5 dB.

Results: Recovery time after flicker stress was significantly longer in patients than in normals and longer in perimetric than in preperimetric patients. Analysis in perimetric patients revealed a larger area under ROC for the provocation test (0.95) than in contrast sensitivity tests (continuous flicker method: 0.90, flicker burst mode: 0.84).

Conclusions: High-power LEDs which are installed in modern full-field devices can be used as a helpful tool to study psychophysical properties. In the present study it could be shown that threshold, adaptation, and recovery of temporal transfer characteristics are impaired in many patients with glaucoma.