Oculomotor differences in adults with and without probable developmental coordination disorder.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Ophthalmology

Background:

• Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD), or dyspraxia, affects motor skills in adults.
• Oculomotor control deficits are known in childhood DCD but less understood in adults.
• Understanding these mechanisms is crucial for addressing daily life impacts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate oculomotor control differences in adults with and without probable DCD.
• To assess visual fixation stability, smooth pursuit, and saccade performance.
• To determine if oculomotor issues persist into adulthood for individuals with DCD.

Main Methods:

• Compared 21 adults with probable DCD/dyspraxia (pDCD) to 21 typically-developing (TD) adults.
• Utilized eye-tracking technology to measure visual fixation, smooth pursuit, and pro- and anti-saccade tasks.
• Analyzed saccadic inhibition, pursuit gain, and attentional engagement.

Main Results:

• Adults with pDCD exhibited more saccades away from targets and higher anti-saccade error rates.
• Lower pursuit gain in faster tasks and difficulties maintaining engagement were observed in the pDCD group.
• Response preparation and slower pursuit gain were comparable between groups.

Conclusions:

• Adults with pDCD demonstrate impaired saccadic inhibition and attention maintenance.
• Oculomotor difficulties in DCD appear to persist throughout the lifespan.
• Recognizing these persistent oculomotor issues is key to understanding DCD's impact on daily activities.