Visually evoked potentials: theory, techniques and clinical applications.

The visually evoked potential (VEP), the recording of which has recently been made possible by the development of computer averaging techniques, is a gross electrical signal generated by the occipital region of the cortex in response to visual stimulation. It is more specific than the electroencephalogram (EEG) and more sensitive to changes in the visual stimulus; thus, it can provide ophthalmologists and vision researchers with information about the human visual system that is unavailable by other methods. Clinically, the VEP is of special value in the areas of refraction, infant acuity, diseases of the optic nerve, color blindness, amblyopia and field defects. Theory, techniques and instrumentation are described, and applications of the VEP to clinical situations and to vision research are discussed.