SARS-CoV-2 Infection Impairs Oculomotor Functions: A Longitudinal Eye-tracking Study

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Ophthalmology
• Infectious Diseases

Background:

• Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is primarily a respiratory illness, but neurological and cognitive effects are increasingly reported.
• Oculomotor functions, crucial for visual attention and cognition, may be affected by SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess oculomotor functions in individuals with mild SARS-CoV-2 infection over six months using eye-tracking.
• To determine if eye movement impairments persist post-infection and if eye-tracking can differentiate infected individuals from controls.

Main Methods:

• Employed three eye-tracking tasks (free-viewing, fixation, smooth pursuit) with symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infected volunteers and healthy controls.
• Collected data at baseline, 2 months, and 6 months post-infection.
• Utilized linear discriminant analysis to evaluate diagnostic accuracy of eye movement metrics.

Main Results:

• Symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infected individuals showed initial impairments in eye movement metrics.
• Over six months, eye movement patterns shifted towards focal processing, with no significant improvement in fixation stability.
• Eye movement metrics differentiated infected from healthy controls with 62% accuracy six months post-infection.

Conclusions:

• Symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection can lead to persistent oculomotor function impairments.
• Eye-tracking technology provides valuable insights into the short- and long-term neurological effects of SARS-CoV-2.
• Future research should utilize advanced methods for comprehensive analysis of SARS-CoV-2's impact on oculomotor functions.