King's College London, Centre of Human & Applied Physiological Sciences (CHAPS), Room 3.14 Shepherd's House, Guy's Campus, London, SE1 1UL, UK.
Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Harefield Hospital, Harefield, UB9 6JH, UK.
Exp Brain Res. 2024 Dec;242(12):2827-2837. doi: 10.1007/s00221-024-06940-6. Epub 2024 Oct 29.
Paradoxically visual dependence is reported to increase with age, contributing to falls risk, whereas visual function typically declines. This study assesses the relationship between age, objective and subjective measures of visual function and visual dependence, in healthy young and older adults. Forty-four healthy Young (YA; n = 32; 18 males, aged 26.2 ± 5.3 yrs.) and Older (OA; n = 12; 3 males, aged 62.4 ± 6.7 yrs.) adults were assessed for objective (visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, depth perception, and lower peripheral vision), and subjective visual function (VFQ-25) along with motion sickness susceptibility. Subjective Visual Vertical (SVV) and induced nausea and vection were assessed using the Rod and Disc Test (RDT). Groups were compared using Mann-Whitney U, whilst determinants of SVV variability were evaluated using Multiple regression modelling. Visual acuity (p < 0.01) and contrast sensitivity (p = 0.04) were lower in OA. Visual dependence (SVV tilt errors) was not associated with ageing (p = 0.46). YA experienced greater RDT-induced vection (p = 0.03). Visual acuity and contrast sensitivity accounted for modest proportions of variance in SVV tilt errors (VA; R = 0.14, F(1,42) = 8.00, p < 0.01; β = 6.37) and (CS; R = 0.06, F(1,42) = 3.93, p = 0.05; β = -4.97), respectively. Our findings suggest that subclinical differences in visual acuity and contrast sensitivity contribute to SVV tilt error variability, among both healthy young and older adults. Further studies are needed to define the inter-relationship between age-related visual function, non-visual factors (including vestibular and somatosensory fidelity, activity levels, fear of falling and cognitive function) and visual dependence.
矛盾的是，据报道，随着年龄的增长，视觉依赖会增加，从而增加跌倒的风险，而视觉功能通常会下降。本研究评估了健康的年轻和老年成年人的年龄、视觉功能的客观和主观测量以及视觉依赖之间的关系。44 名健康的年轻人（YA；n=32；18 名男性，年龄 26.2±5.3 岁）和老年人（OA；n=12；3 名男性，年龄 62.4±6.7 岁）接受了客观（视力、对比敏感度、深度感知和较低的周边视力）和主观视觉功能（VFQ-25）以及晕动病易感性的评估。使用 Rod and Disc Test（RDT）评估了主观视觉垂直（SVV）和诱导性恶心和运动错觉。使用 Mann-Whitney U 比较了两组，使用多元回归模型评估了 SVV 变异性的决定因素。OA 的视力（p<0.01）和对比敏感度（p=0.04）较低。视觉依赖（SVV 倾斜误差）与年龄增长无关（p=0.46）。YA 经历了更大的 RDT 诱导的运动错觉（p=0.03）。视力和对比敏感度分别解释了 SVV 倾斜误差的适度比例变异（VA；R=0.14，F（1，42）=8.00，p<0.01；β=6.37）和（CS；R=0.06，F（1，42）=3.93，p=0.05；β=-4.97）。我们的研究结果表明，在健康的年轻和老年成年人中，视力和对比敏感度的亚临床差异会导致 SVV 倾斜误差的变异性。需要进一步的研究来定义年龄相关的视觉功能、非视觉因素（包括前庭和躯体感觉保真度、活动水平、跌倒恐惧和认知功能）和视觉依赖之间的相互关系。
