Impairment of smooth pursuit eye movement in chronic alcoholics

Smooth pursuit eye movement was quantitatively evaluated in 99 chronic alcoholics and in 100 nonalcoholic control subjects. In both groups the smooth pursuit was increasingly impaired with advancing age, but in chronic alcoholics the smooth pursuit eye movement was more frequently (42.4%) impaired than in age-matched controls (20.0%, p less than 0.005). The characteristic feature of the impairment observed in chronic alcoholics was prominent saccadic movement of the eyes; ataxic pursuit was less common. It is suggested that the impairment of smooth pursuit eye movement in alcoholics is probably attributable to 'premature aging' of the cerebral cortex caused by chronic alcohol abuse.