[Anamnesis of brain-originated vision disorders]

Abstract

A questionnaire for the subjective assessment of cerebral visual disorders was administered to 269 brain damaged patients. The patients' subjective complaints were correlated with the outcome of objective diagnostic procedures (visual perimetry, visual search, spatial contrast sensitivity, visual evoked potentials, depth perception, light- and dark-adaptation, reading, colour vision). A significant correlation was found between subjective complaints and objective diagnostic results for all fields. The prediction of visual impairments on the basis of subjective complaints and verified by objective tests was correct in 80 to 98% of the brain damaged patients tested. Interrater reliability was about 0.84. Thus, the questionnaire is suitable for the assessment of cerebral visual disorders because of its simplicity, short administration time (10-15 min) and high predictive value.