Vergence eye movements in bipolar disorder.
Adrian Andrzej Chrobak1, Janusz Kazimierz Rybakowski2, Maria Abramowicz2
1Uniwersytet Jagielloński Collegium Medicum, Klinika Psychiatrii Dorosłych.
Psychiatria Polska
|October 10, 2020
Summary
Individuals with bipolar disorder (BD) exhibit abnormal vergence eye movements, including increased errors and saccadic intrusions. These findings highlight new oculomotor disturbances in BD patients.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Ophthalmology
- Psychiatry
Background:
- Previous research indicates saccadic eye movement abnormalities in bipolar disorder (BD).
- Vergence eye movements in BD patients have not been previously studied.
- Oculomotor function is crucial for visual processing and can be affected by neurological and psychiatric conditions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate vergence tracking performance in patients with bipolar disorder (BD).
- To objectively measure vergence eye movements in BD.
- To compare vergence function between BD patients and healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- 30 BD patients in remission and 23 healthy controls participated.
- Near point of convergence was measured using the Wolff Wand.
- Instrumented convergence measurements utilized an infrared eye tracker and a vergence stimuli generator.
Main Results:
- BD patients showed significantly higher vergence error and more saccadic intrusions than controls.
- Principal component analysis revealed distinct oculometric differences between BD patients and controls.
- Vergence disturbances and saccadic intrusions were significantly correlated in BD patients.
Conclusions:
- Bipolar disorder patients exhibit vergence eye movement alterations comparable to fronto-parallel plane disturbances.
- This study provides the first objective measurement of vergence eye movement abnormalities in BD.
- Vergence eye movement abnormalities may represent a novel biomarker for BD.
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