This Article  • References  • Full text PDF  • Reply to article  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

J. Susan FitzSimon, FRCOph; Stephen C. Waring, DVM, PhD; Emre Kokmen, MD; Jay W. McLaren, PhD; Richard F. Brubaker, MD

Arch Neurol. 1997;54(2):155-159.

Abstract
Objective
To confirm the putative hypersensitivity of the pupil to a weak mydriatic in persons with Alzheimer dementia.

Design
Twenty patients with Alzheimer dementia and 20 control subjects were examined. Automated binocular infrared pupillography was performed in the dark after instillation of 0.01% tropicamide or placebo. Ocular penetration of eye drops was assessed simultaneously using 2% fluorescein sodium as a tracer.

Setting
Rochester, Minn.

Subjects
Twenty patients and 20 cognitively normal control subjects from the Alzheimer's Disease Patient Registry of the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.

Main Outcome Measure
Percent change in the diameter of the pupil following topical ocular instillation of a diluted concentration of the mydriatic drug tropicamide and penetration of topically applied fluorescein into the aqueous humor.

Results
No statistically significant difference was found between patients with Alzheimer disease and control subjects in either the mydriatic response of the pupil or in the rate of penetration of topically applied fluorescein.

Conclusion
No evidence of pupillary hypersensitivity to an anticholinergic mydriatic drug was found in patients with Alzheimer disease or any evidence that this putative hypersensitivity could be used as an early, simple diagnostic test for Alzheimer disease.

Author Affiliations
From the Departments of Ophthalmology (Drs FitzSimon, McLaren, and Brubaker) and Neurology (Dr Kokmen) and the Section of Clinical Epidemiology (Dr Waring), Mayo Clinic and Mayo Foundation, Rochester, Minn. Dr FitzSimon is now with the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Cocaine and Phenylephrine Eye Drop Test for Parkinson Disease
Sawada et al.
JAMA 2005;293:932-934.
FULL TEXT  

Pupil assay and Alzheimer's disease: A critical analysis
Scinto et al.
Neurology 1999;52:673-673.
FULL TEXT  

Can an Eye Drop Identify Alzheimer's Disease?
JWatch Psychiatry 1997;1997:17-17.
FULL TEXT  

CAN RESPONSE TO AN EYE DROP IDENTIFY ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE?
JWatch General 1997;1997:3-3.
FULL TEXT