Mavedatnia Dorsa, Levinsky Justin, Miao Siyu, Chopra Meera, Lim Rachel, Tepsich Meghan, Propst Evan J, Wolter Nikolaus E, Siu Jennifer M
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Laryngoscope. 2025 Aug;135(8):2949-2957. doi: 10.1002/lary.32132. Epub 2025 Mar 29.
The aim of this study is to objectively quantify the attentional distraction effect of a tracheostomy on visual attention and gaze using eye-tracking technology.
This was a cross-sectional observational study. An eye-tracking device was used to capture eye movements of participants over 5 years of age who were shown 20 images of children with and without tracheostomies. The primary outcome was the number and duration of fixations on different mapped regions of the head and neck, including the central triangle (CT) and peripheral triangle (PT) of the face, and the anterior neck. Facial recall recognition was also assessed and compared across groups.
A total of 160 participants were recruited (57% female, median age 18 years, range 6-54 years). The greatest amount of time was spent viewing the CT of both children with and without tracheostomies. Participants viewed the necks of children with tracheotomies 3.7 times more frequently, spent eight times longer viewing the neck, and were more likely to incorrectly recall children with tracheotomies compared with the control group (3.33 vs. 0.85 fixations, p < 0.001; 0.15 vs. 1.12 ms, p < 0.0001; p < 0.001).
Viewers who are looking at children with tracheostomies redirect their attention from the face toward the neck and spend a longer duration of time viewing the necks of children with tracheostomies compared to those without. Viewers are also more likely to incorrectly recall the faces of children with tracheostomies. These findings highlight a possible explanation for why social interactions may be different for children with tracheostomies beyond their underlying medical and communication problems.
本研究旨在使用眼动追踪技术客观量化气管切开术对视觉注意力和注视的注意力分散效应。
这是一项横断面观察性研究。使用眼动追踪设备捕捉5岁以上参与者的眼动，这些参与者观看了20张有或没有气管切开术的儿童图像。主要结局是在头颈部不同映射区域（包括面部的中央三角区（CT）和周边三角区（PT）以及前颈部）的注视次数和持续时间。还评估并比较了各组的面部回忆识别情况。
共招募了160名参与者（57%为女性，中位年龄18岁，范围6 - 54岁）。观看有和没有气管切开术儿童的CT所花费的时间最多。与对照组相比，参与者观看有气管切开术儿童的颈部频率高3.7倍，观看颈部的时间长8倍，并且更有可能错误地回忆起有气管切开术的儿童（3.33次注视 vs. 0.85次注视，p < 0.001；0.15毫秒 vs. 1.12毫秒，p < 0.0001；p < 0.001）。
观看有气管切开术儿童的观察者会将注意力从面部转移到颈部，并且与观看没有气管切开术儿童的观察者相比，观看有气管切开术儿童颈部的时间更长。观察者也更有可能错误地回忆起有气管切开术儿童的面孔。这些发现突出了对于有气管切开术的儿童而言，除了其潜在的医学和沟通问题外，社交互动可能存在差异的一种可能解释。
