Changes in implicit time of the multifocal electroretinogram response following contrast adaptation

Purpose : Contrast adaptation, produced by prolonged viewing of high contrast gratings, has been suggested to occur at both retinal and cortical locations within the visual pathway. We sought to investigate the characteristics of retinal contrast adaptation using the multifocal electroretinogram (mfERG). Methods : Twenty subjects, with a mean age of 27.8 +/- 5.3 years, underwent mfERG testing using VERIS I. The mfERG was measured after 10 minutes of adaptation to 94% contrast, 5 cyc/deg, sinusoidal, vertical gratings and to an equi-luminance blank control. The mfERG stimulus array consisted of 61-scaled hexagons and flickered according to a pseudorandom binary m-sequence (2(13) -1). Changes in amplitude and implicit time of the first-order kernel were analyzed to determine the effect of contrast adaptation on retinal responses. Results : Adaptation to the vertical grating pattern produced a 2.5 ms increase in implicit time, and the response delay was greatest in the more peripheral parts of the retina (7.6 degrees to 30 degrees). Contrast adaptation did not produce statistically significant changes to the amplitude of the mfERG waveform. Conclusions : Contrast adaptation produced by prolonged viewing of high contrast gratings had a significant effect on retinal responses. It has been suggested that contrast adaptation may play a role in the development of nearwork induced myopia; further work investigating retinal contrast adaptation in myopic individuals may be of interest.