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The Impact of Acuity on Performance of Four Clinical Measures of Contrast Sensitivity in Alzheimer's Disease

^a Department of Psychology, Bridgewater State College, Bridgewater, Massachusetts
^b Department of Psychology, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts
^c Department of Psychology, Kutztown University, Kutztown, Pennsylvania

Sandy A. Neargarder, Department of Psychology, Hart Hall, Bridgewater State College, Bridgewater, MA 02325 E-mail: sneargarder{at}bridgew.edu.

Investigations of contrast sensitivity losses in Alzheimer's disease (AD) have yielded mixed findings, with some investigators reporting deficits and others not. Potential reasons for these discrepancies include differences between samples and assessments utilized and the failure of some investigators to account for acuity differences between groups. To investigate these issues, we administered four clinical contrast sensitivity assessments to the same group of AD patients and elderly control participants and examined the impact of acuity on performance for each assessment. Results revealed group differences across the spatial frequency range. Further, group acuity differences significantly affected performance on two of the four measures (the Regan and the Vistech but not on the Pelli-Robson or Freiburg assessments). Information regarding the availability of established age norms, test–retest reliability data, and other factors including the time, cost, and training needed to administer each measure is provided to aid clinicians and researchers in their search for an effective measure of contrast sensitivity.