[Activation-induced changes in visual functions].

Visual functions were tested in 18 healthy male medical students on a control day and on the day of an oral examination. Stress induced impairment was observed in binocular tests measuring accommodation, convergence or their mutual relationship (near points of accommodation and convergence, Maddox-wing). Results of tests in which fusion operates as stabilizing factor (slightly dissociating test: Polatest) or of tests designed for far distance vision (synoptophore, Maddox-cross, Pola-cross) did not show significant impairment under examination stress. In slightly dissociating tests an activity-dependent improvement in stereoscopic vision became evident. Flicker fusion frequency values increased under stress. Colour vision analysis by means of the Nagel anomaloscope revealed that the absolute matching range remained unchanged, whereas the relative matching range broadened on the day of examination. The results indicate activity-dependence of binocular vision, with an improvement in central nervous functions on the one hand and an impairment of peripheral accommodative components on the other hand. Furthermore, it may be concluded that binocular coordination is achieved independently from accommodation dependent focusing of the image and is apparently processed separately and parallel to monocular image components.