The ASERF Scientific Research Committee and Board of Directors are pleased to announce the following grant award:

Researcher: James Zins, MD

Grant Award: ASERF Interim Grant

Amount Awarded: $4,575

Project Name: Personalized Facelift: Eye Tracking Technology in Aesthetic Surgery

Project Summary:  Eye tracking technology has been utilized extensively in marketing and consumer research, and is now being used clinically. For example, autism severity is being evaluated by measuring eye gaze and fixation times in order to create an objective risk assessment algorithm. We use this same technology to analyze the eye gaze patterns and fixation times on the face of patients that have undergone facial aesthetic surgery. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate eye-tracking technology as a novel outcome assessment tool, enhancing our understanding of the ability of facial rejuvenation procedures to shift visual attention away from the prominent signs of facial aging. We hypothesize that an observer's eye fixation and dwell times (visual attention) on the prominent signs of facial aging will decrease following facial rejuvenation procedures. In addition, we predict that the normal facial scan path, consisting of a central triangle of eyes, nose, and mouth, will differ preoperatively due to the distracting facial features in an aging face. Likewise, we also predict postoperative photos will align to the central triangle earlier in the visual scan path sequence. Moreover, we believe that eye tracking technology can provide a powerful link between objective gaze and subjective aesthetic preferences, adding further objective evidence to the strongly visually based field of aesthetic surgery. Furthermore, this technology has immense potential for many applications throughout Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.