Visual disturbances in patients with Parkinson’s Disease treated with oral medications or deep brain stimulation

Abstract

Aim of the study. Ophthalmological symptoms are common in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and can be evaluated by the Visual Impairment in Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire (VIPD-Q). This study aimed to assess the prevalence of ophthalmological symptoms in PD depending on the type of treatment used i.e. pharmacological or subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation (STN-DBS).Material and methods. We performed a cross-sectional study. The data was gathered from a VIPD-Q and from medical records. Patients with PD were divided into two groups based on the type of treatment -pharmacological (control group, CG) (39 patients) or STN-DBS (40 patients).Results. The great majority of patients -72 (91.1%) -experienced an ophthalmological symptom. The prevalence of three symptoms differed significantly between the groups. A burning sensation or a gritty feeling in the eyes occurred more often in patients in the STN-DBS group (40.0% vs. 15.4%; p = 0.015). On the other hand, the inability to read plain text on a coloured or grey background and problems with rapid changes of light intensity were more common in the CG group (38.5% vs. 15.0%, p = 0.018 and 28.2% vs. 10.0%, p = 0.039, respectively).Conclusions and clinical implications. The prevalence of ophthalmological symptoms in PD is high. Despite significant differences in the three symptoms, the overall prevalence of ophthalmological clinical features was similar in the evaluated groups.