Pursuit eye movements in chronic schizophrenics: relationship between increased saccades and negative symptoms

Smooth pursuit eye movements of chronic schizophrenics (n = 16) and controls (n = 10) were recorded while subjects tracked a sinusoidally-moving target. Negative symptoms in schizophrenics were rated using the Schedule for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms. An increased frequency of smooth pursuit eye movement abnormalities was found in the schizophrenic group, including greater variability of gain and more frequent and larger saccades. Frequency of saccades was positively correlated with the Negative Symptoms scales for attentional impairment and alogia. The results confirm findings of eye movement dysfunction in schizophrenics and provide new evidence that the motor and cognitive dysfunctions of schizophrenia may be related.