title: Visual function assessment in simulated real-life situations in HIV-infected subjects.
abstract: Visual function abnormalities are common in people living with HIV disease (PLWH) without retinitis, even after improvement in immune status. Abnormalities such as reduced contrast sensitivity, altered color vision, peripheral visual field loss, and electrophysiological changes are related to a combination of retinal dysfunctions, involving inner and outer retinal structures. The standard protocol for testing vision performance in clinical practice is the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) chart. However, this method poorly correlates with activities of daily living that require patients to assess visual stimuli in multiple light/contrast conditions, and with limited time. We utilized a novel interactive computer program (Central Vision Analyzer) to analyze vision performance in PLWH under a variety of light/contrast conditions that simulate stressful and real-world environments. The program tests vision in a time-dependent way that we believe better correlates with daily living activities than the non-timed ETDRS chart. We also aimed to correlate visual scores with retinal neuro-fiber layer thickness on optical coherence tomography. Here we show that visual acuity is more affected in PLWH in comparison to HIV-seronegative controls in varying contrast and luminance, especially if the nadir CD4+ T-cell count was lower than 100 cells/mm3. Visual impairment reflects the loss of retinal nerve fiber layer thickness especially of the temporal-inferior sector. In PLWH the ETDRS chart test led to better visual acuity compared to the Central Vision Analyzer equivalent test, likely because patients had indefinite time to guess the letters. This study confirms and strengthens the finding that visual function is affected in PLWH even in absence of retinitis, since we found that the HIV serostatus is the best predictor of visual loss. The Central Vision Analyzer may be useful in the diagnosis of subclinical HIV-associated visual loss in multiple light/contrast conditions, and may offer better understanding of this entity called "neuroretinal disorder".
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Jacobs Retina Center at Shiley Eye Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America; Ophthalmological Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences and Community Health, Ca' Granda Foundation-Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, University of Milan, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Giulio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Barteselli
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Jacobs Retina Center at Shiley Eye Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America; Srimati Kanuri Santhamma Vitreo-Retina Service, L.V. Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, India.
authors.forename: Jay
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chhablani
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Jacobs Retina Center at Shiley Eye Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Maria Laura
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Gomez
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Jacobs Retina Center at Shiley Eye Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Aubrey L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Doede
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Laurie
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dustin
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Jacobs Retina Center at Shiley Eye Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America; King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Igor
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kozak
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Jacobs Retina Center at Shiley Eye Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Dirk-Uwe
authors.initials: DU
authors.lastname: Bartsch
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Stanley P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Azen
authors.affiliation: HIV Neurobehavioral Research Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: Scott L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Letendre
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Jacobs Retina Center at Shiley Eye Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, United States of America.
authors.forename: William R
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Freeman
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015350:Contrast Sensitivity; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008027:Light; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence; D014787:Vision Tests