title: Directional asymmetries of saccadic hypometria in patients with early Parkinson's disease and unilateral symptoms.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Saccade may be abnormal in Parkinson's disease (PD), but there have been no systematic studies on directional asymmetries of horizontal saccades in early PD. The aims of this study were to determine the saccadic abnormalities and their directional asymmetries.
  
  
  METHODS
  We recorded visually guided horizontal prosaccades with random (random amplitudes and irregular time intervals) and regular (fixed amplitude and regular time interval) paradigms using video-oculography in 44 patients with unilateral symptoms and signs from early PD and in 26 controls.
  
  
  RESULTS
  PD patients showed decreased saccadic amplitude compared to the controls, especially during regular paradigm while the saccadic latency did not differ between the groups. Patients with unilateral PD tended to show more severe saccadic hypometria toward the symptomatic side during the regu- lar paradigm, compared to normal control.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Even in early PD patients, saccadic accuracy may be abnormal. Asymmetries in saccadic hypometria are more likely to be detected during the anticipatable saccadic paradigm, which could be a useful adjunct in the diagnosis of early-stage PD.
authors: Department of Neurology, Chonnam National University Medical School, Gwangju, Korea.
authors: Seong-Min
authors: SM
authors: Choi
authors: Seung-Han
authors: SH
authors: Lee
authors: Kang-Ho
authors: KH
authors: Choi
authors: Tai-Seung
authors: TS
authors: Nam
authors: Joon-Tae
authors: JT
authors: Kim
authors: Man-Seok
authors: MS
authors: Park
authors: Byeong-Chae
authors: BC
authors: Kim
authors: Myeong-Kyu
authors: MK
authors: Kim
authors: Ki-Hyun
authors: KH
authors: Cho
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015835:Ocular Motility Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000150:complications*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012438:Saccades / Q000502:physiology*; D014741:Video Recording