A Study Using Transorbital Alternating Current Stimulation for People With Glaucoma

Participants will engage in baseline, intervention, post-intervention, and follow-up visits
over the span of approximately 8 weeks. The expected outcomes for this project are that (1)
rtACS activates viable but poorly or non-functional retinal ganglion cells to improve their
structural and functional capabilities, (2) measures of retinal, optic nerve, and visual
brain structures and function will correspond with improvement in visual function, and (3)
changes in visual function following rtACS will be associated with improvements in
participants' functional ability and QoL. rtACS has successfully been used in the
rehabilitation of visual impairments in people with optic neuropathies; however, we do not
know the clinical value of rtACS specifically for people with glaucoma, including the effect
of rtACS on people's functional ability and QoL.

Inclusion Criteria:

- Live in a community, residential setting (i.e., non-institutionalized, not homeless)

- Diagnosis of glaucoma (not type-specific, excluding traumatic glaucoma): Moderate
defect or worse in both eyes but not total blindness

- Visual field defects present for at least 6 months

- Best-corrected visual acuity of 20/200 (1.0 logMAR) or better in at least one eye

- Commitment to comply with study procedures (2 week period of intervention sessions)
with baseline, post-intervention, and follow-up visits

Exclusion Criteria:

- Other optic comorbidity than glaucoma

- End-stage organ disease or medical condition with subsequent vision loss (e.g.,
diabetes, stroke)

- Other diseases of the retina or cataracts responsible for worse than 20/70
best-corrected visual acuity

- Photosensitivity to flickering lights

- Intraocular Pressure (IOP) > 27 mmHg at baseline

* Medically diagnosed memory disorder or Telephone Interview for Cognitive
Status-modified (TICS-m) score ≤ 27

- Electric or electronic implants (e.g., cardiac pacemaker)

- Metallic artifacts/implants in head and/or torso

- Diagnosed epilepsy

- Epileptic seizure within the past 3 years of enrollment date

- Auto-immune disease, acute stage (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis)

- Metastatic disease

- Certain mental diseases/psychiatric conditions (e.g., schizophrenia) that would
preclude reliable testing and participation

- Unstable medical conditions (e.g., diabetes, diabetes causing diabetic retinopathy)

- Claustrophobia (to limit functional neuroimaging)

- Received rtACS in the past