posted on 2019-03-08, 12:08authored byRachel L. Wilson, Kevin B. Paterson, Victoria McGowan, Claire V. Hutchinson
People with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) report
vision-related reading difficulty, although this has not been demonstrated objectively.
Accordingly, we assessed reading speed and acuity, including crowded acuity and
acuity for isolated words using standardized tests of reading and vision, in 27 ME/CFS
patients and matched controls. We found that the ME/CFS group exhibited slower
maximum reading speed, and had poorer crowded acuity than controls. Moreover,
crowded acuity was significantly associated with maximum reading speed, indicating
that patients who were more susceptible to visual crowding read more slowly. These
findings suggest vision-related reading difficulty belongs to a class of measureable
symptoms for ME/CFS patients.
Funding
This work was funded by an ME Research UK (Grant No. SC036942) to CH and KP. VM was supported by an Economic and Social Research Council (Grant No. ES/L010836/1).
History
Citation
Frontiers in Psychology, 2018, 9:1468.
Author affiliation
/Organisation/COLLEGE OF LIFE SCIENCES/Biological Sciences/Neuroscience, Psychology and Behaviour