The influence of corrected visual acuity on visual attention and incidental learning in patients with multiple sclerosis.

Visual disturbance is one of the hallmarks of multiple sclerosis (MS), yet clinical neuropsychologists rarely quantitatively assess visual acuity using standardized and norm-referenced measures. This is a significant oversight because disturbances in visual acuity can have an obvious and profound impact on neuropsychological tests which rely upon visual attention and/or scanning. This study investigated the relationship between corrected visual acuity and a widely used measure of visual attention and incidental learning in a group of 35 patients with MS. Regression analysis indicated that corrected visual acuity accounted for 21.3% of the variance in a Coding subtest. The results suggest neuropsychologists and other health care providers should exercise caution in interpreting visually based tests for patients with MS and should assess visual acuity with standardized and norm-referenced measures.