Parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment
Context Although the pupil light reflex has been widely used as a clinical diagnostic tool for autonomic nervous system dysfunction, there is no systematic review available to summarize the evidence that the pupil light reflex is a sensitive method to detect parasympathetic dysfunction. Meanwhile,...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
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Public Library of Science
2016
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38040/ |
| _version_ | 1848795585076789248 |
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| author | Wang, Yang Zekveld, Adriana A. Naylor, Graham Ohlenforst, Barbara Jansma, Elise P. Lorens, Artur Lunner, Thomas Kramer, Sophia E. |
| author_facet | Wang, Yang Zekveld, Adriana A. Naylor, Graham Ohlenforst, Barbara Jansma, Elise P. Lorens, Artur Lunner, Thomas Kramer, Sophia E. |
| author_sort | Wang, Yang |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Context
Although the pupil light reflex has been widely used as a clinical diagnostic tool for autonomic nervous system dysfunction, there is no systematic review available to summarize the evidence that the pupil light reflex is a sensitive method to detect parasympathetic dysfunction. Meanwhile, the relationship between parasympathetic functioning and hearing impairment is relatively unknown.
Objectives
To 1) review the evidence for the pupil light reflex being a sensitive method to evaluate parasympathetic dysfunction, 2) review the evidence relating hearing impairment and parasympathetic activity and 3) seek evidence of possible connections between hearing impairment and the pupil light reflex.
Methods
Literature searches were performed in five electronic databases. All selected articles were categorized into three sections: pupil light reflex and parasympathetic dysfunction, hearing impairment and parasympathetic activity, pupil light reflex and hearing impairment.
Results
Thirty-eight articles were included in this review. Among them, 36 articles addressed the pupil light reflex and parasympathetic dysfunction. We summarized the information in these data according to different types of parasympathetic-related diseases. Most of the studies showed a difference on at least one pupil light reflex parameter between patients and healthy controls. Two articles discussed the relationship between hearing impairment and parasympathetic activity. Both studies reported a reduced parasympathetic activity in the hearing impaired groups. The searches identified no results for pupil light reflex and hearing impairment.
Discussion and Conclusions
As the first systematic review of the evidence, our findings suggest that the pupil light reflex is a sensitive tool to assess the presence of parasympathetic dysfunction. Maximum constriction velocity and relative constriction amplitude appear to be the most sensitive parameters. There are only two studies investigating the relationship between parasympathetic activity and hearing impairment, hence further research is needed. The pupil light reflex could be a candidate measurement tool to achieve this goal. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:34:25Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-38040 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:34:25Z |
| publishDate | 2016 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-380402020-05-04T17:46:13Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38040/ Parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment Wang, Yang Zekveld, Adriana A. Naylor, Graham Ohlenforst, Barbara Jansma, Elise P. Lorens, Artur Lunner, Thomas Kramer, Sophia E. Context Although the pupil light reflex has been widely used as a clinical diagnostic tool for autonomic nervous system dysfunction, there is no systematic review available to summarize the evidence that the pupil light reflex is a sensitive method to detect parasympathetic dysfunction. Meanwhile, the relationship between parasympathetic functioning and hearing impairment is relatively unknown. Objectives To 1) review the evidence for the pupil light reflex being a sensitive method to evaluate parasympathetic dysfunction, 2) review the evidence relating hearing impairment and parasympathetic activity and 3) seek evidence of possible connections between hearing impairment and the pupil light reflex. Methods Literature searches were performed in five electronic databases. All selected articles were categorized into three sections: pupil light reflex and parasympathetic dysfunction, hearing impairment and parasympathetic activity, pupil light reflex and hearing impairment. Results Thirty-eight articles were included in this review. Among them, 36 articles addressed the pupil light reflex and parasympathetic dysfunction. We summarized the information in these data according to different types of parasympathetic-related diseases. Most of the studies showed a difference on at least one pupil light reflex parameter between patients and healthy controls. Two articles discussed the relationship between hearing impairment and parasympathetic activity. Both studies reported a reduced parasympathetic activity in the hearing impaired groups. The searches identified no results for pupil light reflex and hearing impairment. Discussion and Conclusions As the first systematic review of the evidence, our findings suggest that the pupil light reflex is a sensitive tool to assess the presence of parasympathetic dysfunction. Maximum constriction velocity and relative constriction amplitude appear to be the most sensitive parameters. There are only two studies investigating the relationship between parasympathetic activity and hearing impairment, hence further research is needed. The pupil light reflex could be a candidate measurement tool to achieve this goal. Public Library of Science 2016-04-18 Article PeerReviewed Wang, Yang, Zekveld, Adriana A., Naylor, Graham, Ohlenforst, Barbara, Jansma, Elise P., Lorens, Artur, Lunner, Thomas and Kramer, Sophia E. (2016) Parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment. PLoS ONE, 11 (4). e0153566/1-e0153566/26. ISSN 1932-6203 http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0153566 doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0153566 doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0153566 |
| spellingShingle | Wang, Yang Zekveld, Adriana A. Naylor, Graham Ohlenforst, Barbara Jansma, Elise P. Lorens, Artur Lunner, Thomas Kramer, Sophia E. Parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment |
| title | Parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment |
| title_full | Parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment |
| title_fullStr | Parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment |
| title_short | Parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment |
| title_sort | parasympathetic nervous system dysfunction, as identified by pupil light reflex, and its possible connection to hearing impairment |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38040/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38040/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/38040/ |