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Impaired Visual Acuity as a Risk Factor for Visual Hallucinations in Parkinson’s Disease

Department of Neurology, Sumitomo Hospital, Osaka, Japan, matsui-hideaki{at}sumitomo-hp.or.jp

Fukashi Udaka, MD, PhD

Department of Neurology, Sumitomo Hospital, Osaka, Japan

Akiko Tamura, MD

Department of Neurology, Sumitomo Hospital, Osaka, Japan

Masaya Oda, MD, PhD

Department of Neurology, Sumitomo Hospital, Osaka, Japan

Tamotsu Kubori, MD, PhD

Department of Neurology, Sumitomo Hospital, Osaka, Japan

Kazuto Nishinaka, MD, PhD

Department of Neurology, Sumitomo Hospital, Osaka, Japan

Masakuni Kameyama, MD, PhD

Department of Neurology, Sumitomo Hospital, Osaka, Japan

Pathophysiology of hallucinations in Parkinson’s disease is poorly understood. This study investigated relationships between visual hallucinations and visual acuity. Twenty-six consecutive patients with Parkinson’s disease participated in this study. Patients were divided into two groups: patients with visual hallucinations (VH group) and those without visual hallucinations (no-VH group). Unaided and corrected eyesight was evaluated in all patients, and if frequent use of prescription glasses or contact lenses was involved, eyesight using these lenses was also measured as the patient’s own best eyesight. If a patient did not use prescription glasses or contact lenses, the patient’s own best eyesight was defined as the unaided eyesight. Multivariate regression analysis demonstrated that agonist use and best eyesight were different after the backward elimination method. Visual hallucinations were closely related not to uncorrected eyesight or unaided eyesight but to the patient’s best eyesight. It is suggested that impaired visual acuity is a risk factor for visual hallucinations.

Key Words: Parkinson’s disease • visual hallucination • visual acuity • Charles-Bonnet syndrome

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