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Neurocritical Care
Published in: Neurocritical Care 2/2016

01-04-2016 | Original Article

Interrater Reliability of Pupillary Assessments

Authors: DaiWai M. Olson, Sonja Stutzman, Ciji Saju, Margaret Wilson, Weidan Zhao, Venkatesh Aiyagari

Published in: Neurocritical Care | Issue 2/2016

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Abstract

Background

Subjective scoring of pupil reactivity is a fundamental element of the neurological examination for which the pupillometer provides an objective measure.

Methods

This single-blinded observational study examined interrater reliability of pupil exam findings between two practitioners and between practitioners and a pupillometer.

Results

From 2329 paired assessments, the interrater reliability between practitioners was only moderate for pupil size (k = 0.54), shape (k = 0.62), and reactivity (k = 0.40). Only 33.3 % of pupils scored as non-reactive by practitioners were scored as non-reactive by pupillometry.

Conclusions

Despite the strong emphasis placed on the traditional pupil examination, especially for patients with a neurological illness, there is limited interrater reliability for subjective scoring of pupillary assessments. Thus, the use of automated pupillometers should be examined as a potential method to increase the reliability of measuring of pupil reactivity.
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Metadata
Title
Interrater Reliability of Pupillary Assessments
Authors
DaiWai M. Olson
Sonja Stutzman
Ciji Saju
Margaret Wilson
Weidan Zhao
Venkatesh Aiyagari
Publication date
01-04-2016
Publisher
Springer US
Published in
Neurocritical Care / Issue 2/2016
Print ISSN: 1541-6933
Electronic ISSN: 1556-0961
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12028-015-0182-1

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