Vision and driving in multiple sclerosis.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the relationship between measures of visual dysfunction and driving performance in persons with multiple sclerosis (MS).


METHODS
Between-group comparison.


METHODS
All data were collected in an outpatient research setting.


METHODS
Persons (N=66) with MS of the relapsing remitting type (26 self-reporting visual difficulties; 40 self-reporting no visual difficulties) and 26 age- and sex-matched healthy controls.


METHODS
Not applicable.


METHODS
Measures of vision included visual acuity, depth perception, and color perception. Driving was measured using documented accident/violation rate and self-reported driving behaviors.


RESULTS
Quantitative analysis only revealed that MS persons with self-reported visual difficulties performed significantly worse than healthy controls on color perception (Kruskal-Wallis; chi(2)(2)=8.89, P=.01). There were no group differences on driving behaviors, and correlational analysis revealed a lack of relationship between the selected visual (visual acuity, depth perception, color perception) and driving performance measures (documented accident/violation rate and self-limiting driving behaviors).


CONCLUSIONS
Persons with MS who self-reported difficulties with vision had acceptable visual acuity, despite demonstrating impairment in color perception. The fact that visual acuity remains the most common measure for visual fitness to drive remains problematic. There is a need to further define measures of visual dysfunction relevant to driving among this clinical population.
Department of Psychology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA. schultheis@drexel.edu
Maria T
MT
Schultheis
Kevin
K
Manning
Valerie
V
Weisser
Alison
A
Blasco
Jocelyn
J
Ang
Mark E
ME
Wilkinson
D000063:Accidents, Traffic; D000328:Adult; D001334:Automobile Driving; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult