Are you a speech therapist ?
You are the specialist of dyslexia.
You are familiar with this severe and life-lasting written language disorder that affects over 8% of the population.
Speech therapy is the main recommendation for dyslexia and you are committed to finding solutions to assist those with this disorder!
Have you heard about the discovery of the Rennes researchers in 2017 concerning dyslexia?
Do any of your patients have a Lili lamp to help them with their reading?
To answer your legitimate questions and concerns about this controversial innovation, we have designed this page for you 👇
A scientific discovery
Using a foveascope for their eye research, they looked more closely at the blue cones at Maxwell’s centroids (in the fovea, the retinal area in the centre of the macula) and found a difference between normal readers and dyslexic people.
For the normo-reader, the directing eye has a “round” centroid formed by the blue cones, whereas the non-directing eye has a more ovoid centroid. Thanks to this differentiation, the image perceived by the dominant eye is transmitted more quickly to the brain processing (occipital visual areas and/or Visual Word Form Area – VWFA).
For the dyslexic person, the blue cones of both eyes form a ’round’ centroid. The arrangement of these photoreceptors is therefore identical from one eye to the other. The two perceived images will be transmitted simultaneously to the visual information processing area. The occipital visual areas and the Visual Word Form Area will then have to process a very delicate superposition of images.
Which, for a text, might be ressembling to this:
The Lili lamp : an adaptive assistive technology
Lili for Life is the only company authorised to exploit, in France and in the world, the patents filed on “lamp” devices in relation to this discovery.
In order to promote this discovery as widely as possible, our R&D team has developed an innovation that allows the majority of dyslexic people to read with greater ease.
Lili emits flashes of light that are invisible to the eye. This “stroboscopic effect” can be adjusted via the mobile application for each patient according to two parameters:
- the frequence : between 60 and 120 hertz
- the balance : the percentage of time the lamp is off (between 15 and 20%)
This “stroboscopic effect” creates the time lag necessary for the two images to no longer overlap when processing visual information. The visual perception of the written word is then close to that of a normo-reader, Lili having compensated for the similarity of Maxwell’s centroids.
Lili allows dyslexics to erase this uncomfortable mirror image and to read more easily and fluently. The perception of writing is more precise for many dyslexics. In the long term, the light flashes help them to increase their spelling lexical stock, allowing progress in reading and spelling (addressing/lexical/surface/dyslexic pathway).
Lili is developed and manufactured in France. We wanted it to be as ergonomic as possible, which is why we worked on its shape, weight, autonomy, discretion and resistance. It is portable, foldable and comes with a protective case. Neutral, it presents few visual distractors. Once it has been personalised for its user, via the settings of the free Lili for Life application on the smartphone, there is no more need for manipulation or a smartphone, it is ready to use.
What are the actual results of the innovation?
Our beta test in 2021 showed an efficiency rate of 80%. For more details on the process and results of the beta test click here.
To date, the feedback is as follows:
- 30% report a “wow effect” and describe a clear difference in visual perception as soon as the adjustment is made.
- The rate of “real difference in visual perception” reaches 52% because, for some, it takes 5 to 6 uses, or even a week to reach it.
- 66.5% report an improvement in the speed and/or fluidity of their reading.
- A majority reported a real reduction in visual-attentional fatigue with prolonged use. These reports of reduced fatigue and improved reading comfort are much higher (80%) than a placebo effect (15 to 30%).
- In addition to reading, there are behavioural gains: self-confidence, motivation to work and to the reading task, concentration, etc.
To complete these results, an academic study by a Master 2 student and a clinical study are underway. They confirm our results by finding 83% effectiveness. Click here to consult the synthesized study.
In addition to the scientific literature, we have been receiving moving testimonies from dyslexic people, both children and adults, who have been “discovering reading all over again” since using Lili. Their comments confirm the veracity of the effects of the innovation, and reinforce our mission to promote it widely, to dyslexic people throughout the world.
How to use Lili in speech therapy?
In a session, Lili can potentially remove a bias in metaphonological or mental representation work if you are working on coded visual input, just as a working memory difficulty will be a bias in a multi-item listening task.
If you are using Lili in a session, please let us know about your findings and your test results! We would love to hear from patients who tested the lamp with you!
Would you like to know more or to discuss with us?
