Haloperidol delays visually evoked cortical potentials but not electroretinograms in mice

Visually evoked cortical potentials (VECPs) and electroretinograms (ERG) to flash stimulation were studied in one ICR strain mouse and 23 ICR mice, respectively. The effect of a dopamine receptor blocker, haloperidol, on both responses was investigated. Significant peak latency prolongation was found in VECPs following injection of haloperidol, while the amplitude reduction of the b-wave was found in ERG. No effect of anesthetics only on ERG was found. It has been assumed that haloperidol affects VECPs related function mainly the higher visual pathway. However, the slight decrease of the b-wave amplitude of ERG could not exclude the possibility of the toxic effect on the retina.