Study: Alzheimer's Impairs Ability to Distinguish Colors

Researchers at the University Eye Clinic in Basel, Switzerland have found that Alzheimer's patients have difficulty distinguishing colors no matter how severe their condition.

Visual problems are among the earliest symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, but it has always been uncertain whether the disease impaired the ability to discern colors.

The researchers tested the color vision of 26 Alzheimer's disease patients against 25 control patients using two standard tests for measuring such vision. One of the tests, primarily designed for children, was chosen in order to avoid problems due to cognitive decline. Each group was rated after undergoing a complete neuro-ophthalmologic examination.

The Alzheimer's patients made significantly more unspecific errors in the tests than those in the control group. No relation between test performance and severity of Alzheimer's disease was found.

Other sources: Age and Aging. 2003 Jul;32(4):422-6