title: Carbon monoxide poisoning: impact on ocular motility.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study evaluated the utility of ocular motor measures in characterizing subtle cognitive changes after carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Delayed onset of neurologic and psychiatric symptoms occurs in a number of patients with no apparent deficit immediately after CO poisoning. Although historically attributed to necrosis of the globus pallidus (GP), subsequent demyelination of the cerebral white matter has been proposed as the principal driver of these deficits. Here, we evaluate cognitive changes in a patient with structural deficits largely confined to the globus pallidus at 3 years post-CO poisoning, using ocular motor measures.
  
  
  METHODS
  A battery of ocular motor tasks evaluated the basic metrics of movements, and the higher-order cognitive control processes governing movement.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Abnormalities were revealed across a broad range of saccadic measures, including latency, accuracy, and error rate, reflected impaired response inhibition, working memory, and attentional processes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These observations suggest subclinical deficits potentially reflecting damage to the GP. Furthermore, we have shown that ocular motor measures sensitively characterize cognitive deficits that may otherwise be overlooked after CO poisoning, and that may benefit from intervention.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Neuroscience, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia. fij@unimelb.edu.au
authors.forename: Joanne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fielding
authors.forename: Wendy
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lang
authors.forename: Owen B
authors.initials: OB
authors.lastname: White
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D002249:Carbon Monoxide Poisoning / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003463:Cues; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D015835:Ocular Motility Disorders / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D012438:Saccades / Q000502:physiology