Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, PO Box 2040, 3000 CA, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Eur J Appl Physiol. 2013 Dec;113(12):3049-57. doi: 10.1007/s00421-013-2739-z. Epub 2013 Oct 6.
Although several lines of research suggest that the head and eye movement systems interact, previous studies have reported that applying static neck torsion does not affect smooth pursuit eye movements in healthy controls. This might be due to several methodological issues. Here we systematically investigated the effect of static neck torsion on smooth pursuit and saccadic eye movement behavior in healthy subjects.
In twenty healthy controls, we recorded eye movements with video-oculography while their trunk was in static rotation relative to the head (7 positions from 45° to the left to 45° to right). The subject looked at a moving dot on the screen. In two separate paradigms, we evoked saccadic and smooth pursuit eye movements, using both predictable and unpredictable target motions.
Smooth pursuit gain and saccade peak velocity decreased slightly with increasing neck torsion. Smooth pursuit gains were higher for predictable target movements than for unpredictable target movements. Saccades to predictable targets had lower latencies, but reduced gains compared to saccades to unpredictable targets. No interactions between neck torsion and target predictability were observed.
Applying static neck torsion has small effects on voluntary eye movements in healthy subjects. These effects are not modulated by target predictability.
尽管有几条研究线索表明头部和眼部运动系统相互作用，但以前的研究报告称，在健康对照组中，施加静态颈部扭转不会影响平滑追踪眼动。这可能是由于几个方法学问题。在这里，我们系统地研究了在健康受试者中，静态颈部扭转对平滑追踪和扫视眼动行为的影响。
在二十名健康对照者中，我们在他们的躯干相对于头部进行静态旋转（从左侧 45°到右侧 45°的 7 个位置）时，通过视频眼动记录眼动。受试者注视屏幕上移动的点。在两个独立的范式中，我们使用可预测和不可预测的目标运动来诱发扫视和平滑追踪眼动。
随着颈部扭转的增加，平滑追踪增益和扫视峰值速度略有下降。与不可预测的目标运动相比，可预测的目标运动产生的平滑追踪增益更高。与不可预测的目标相比，可预测目标的扫视潜伏期更短，但增益降低。在颈部扭转和目标可预测性之间未观察到相互作用。
在健康受试者中，施加静态颈部扭转对自主眼动有较小的影响。这些影响不受目标可预测性的调节。
