Stereopsis deficits and visual-network functional connectivity changes in patients with schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is characterized by disruptions in large-scale brain networks, yet the specific relationship between visual-network connectivity and perceptual deficits such as impaired stereopsis remains unclear. We hypothesized that patients with schizophrenia would exhibit poorer stereoscopic acuity and altered connectivity between visual regions and higher-order integration systems.

We investigated whole-brain functional connectivity using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging in 89 patients with chronic schizophrenia and 88 healthy controls, focusing on 31 visual-network seeds defined by the Power-264 atlas. Group differences and regression models were assessed using pooled voxel-wise false discovery rate (FDR) correction across all seed maps. Supplementary pooled cluster-level FDR analyses were performed to further evaluate connectivity associations with stereopsis, PANSS symptom dimensions, and diagnosis-by-stereopsis interactions.

Patients with schizophrenia showed poorer stereopsis and abnormal connectivity patterns within visual networks. Increased connectivity with thalamic and striatal regions and widespread reduced connectivity involving sensorimotor, temporal, insular, and frontal regions were identified after voxel-wise FDR correction. Supplementary cluster-level analyses revealed symptom-related connectivity patterns and between-group differences in stereopsis-connectivity relationships involving calcarine and lingual regions with frontal and temporal areas. These relationships showed more negative slopes in healthy controls and comparatively more positive slopes in patients with schizophrenia.

Patients with schizophrenia exhibited robust visual-network dysconnectivity and impaired stereopsis. Differences in stereopsis-connectivity relationships between groups suggest altered integration between early visual regions and higher-order processing systems in schizophrenia. Although requiring independent replication, stereopsis assessment may provide a clinically accessible approach for characterizing visual perceptual dysfunction.