title: Self-reported visual dysfunction in multiple sclerosis: results from the 25-Item National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire (VFQ-25).
abstract: Visual impairment is one of the most common clinical manifestations of Multiple Sclerosis (MS), and is strongly related to overall health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in MS and other disorders. However, the assessment of vision-specific HRQOL in patients with MS has been limited. The purpose of this study was to examine self-reported visual dysfunction in a clinically heterogeneous MS cohort using the 25-Item National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire (VFQ-25). The VFQ-25 was administered by telephone interview to a subset of participants in a follow-up study to a phase III trial of interferon beta-1a for relapsing-remitting MS. Mean VFQ-25 composite scores and selected sub-scale scores were significantly lower (worse) among patients in our MS cohort (n=35) compared with a published reference group of patients with no history of chronic eye disease (n= 118). These differences were observed despite a relatively younger age and tighter distribution of binocular visual acuities in the MS cohort Patients with MS in this study thus demonstrated a greater degree of self-reported visual dysfunction, as measured by the VFQ-25, compared with an eye disease-free reference group. The VFQ-25 is a potentially useful measure of vision-specific HRQOL in patients with MS.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, USA.
authors.forename: L J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Balcer
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Baier
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Kunkle
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Rudick
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Weinstock-Guttman
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Simonian
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Galetta
authors.forename: G R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Cutter
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Maguire
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017326:Clinical Trials, Phase III as Topic; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020529:Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009316:National Institutes of Health (U.S.); D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012016:Reference Values; D012650:Self Disclosure; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*