  We evaluated the cognitive status of visually impaired patients referred to
low vision rehabilitation (LVR) based on a standard cognitive battery and a new
evaluation tool, named the COGEVIS, which can be used to assess patients with
severe visual deficits. We studied patients aged 60 and above, referred to the
LVR Hospital in Paris. Neurological and cognitive evaluations were performed in
an expert memory center. Thirty-eight individuals, 17 women and 21 men with a
mean age of 70.3 $\pm$ 1.3 years and a mean visual acuity of 0.12 $\pm$ 0.02,
were recruited over a one-year period. Sixty-three percent of participants had
normal cognitive status. Cognitive impairment was diagnosed in 37.5% of
participants. The COGEVIS score cutoff point to screen for cognitive impairment
was 24 (maximum score of 30) with a sensitivity of 66.7% and a specificity of
95%. Evaluation following 4 months of visual rehabilitation showed an
improvement of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (p = 0 004), National
Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire (p = 0 035), and
Montgomery-{\AA}sberg Depression Rating Scale (p = 0 037). This study
introduces a new short test to screen for cognitive impairment in visually
impaired patients.
