Evaluation of motor vehicle driving performance in patients with chronic diplopia.
BACKGROUND
Uncorrected diplopia is a condition that may make it unsafe for a person to operate a motor vehicle. In some jurisdictions, physicians are required by law to report the person with diplopia to the appropriate authority.


METHODS
In this masked study, 10 patients of varying ages with stable diplopia of greater than 6 months' duration and 10 age-matched control subjects were placed in a driving simulator and evaluated on their performance. Various cues and threats, including near-accident situations, were presented; stimulus recognition and reaction times were recorded.


RESULTS
No significant difference was found between the groups for either cue or threat recognition responses or reaction times. Increasing age was the factor most associated with poor response performance on all test measures (P < .001). Slowed response time in patients with poor binocular single vision was the only other significant association.


CONCLUSIONS
Although response times were slower in subjects with poor binocular single vision scores, stimulus recognition responses were not significantly different; in our opinion, stimulus recognition is more relevant to driving performance and therefore chronic diplopia does not appear to be a contraindication for driving a motor vehicle.
White
J E
JE
Eye Specialists of the Midlands, Columbia, South Carolina, USA.
Marshall
S C
SC
Diedrich-Closson
K L
KL
Burton
A L
AL
D000328:Adult; D001334:Automobile Driving; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004172:Diplopia / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010865:Pilot Projects; D015348:Vision, Binocular; D014792:Visual Acuity