There are three different types of eye movements that we use every single day: Fixations, saccades, and pursuits. When an ocular motor dysfunction is present, it makes these movements much harder for the person to perform their daily tasks. Learning what to look out for can benefit you and those around you as it can be aided through vision therapy.
Saccades are when your eyes jump from one object to the next at a quick pace. Saccades are the most used eye movement. This eye movement is used when reading, looking around a room, driving, and so much more. When looking at someone with ocular motor dysfunction and having them look from one object to the next, they might look past the target or not quite hit the target. Because they have difficulty locating the target, the saccades may be slow.
Pursuits are the ability to follow a moving object. When looking at someone with ocular motor dysfunction. their pursuits will look choppy, and they may have some loss of visual attention. An underlying issue regarding a deficit in pursuits is that the patient may experience nausea when rapid movements are introduced. It may also look like they are looking away from the target they intended to follow.
Fixations are the ability to look at a still object for an extended period. We often see people with an ocular motor dysfunction attempting to look at a still object. It will look like they are looking away from that target on occasion. To them, it might feel like they aren't looking away from the object. Fixation is very important to all the other eye movements as you need to be able to look and focus on an object to follow it. It is also important when jumping from one object to another. Sometimes dysfunctions within fixations can be mistaken for ADHD.
Eye movements are crucial to everyday life. Living with an ocular motor dysfunction makes simple everyday tasks challenging. Learning what to look out for can benefit you and those around you. Vision therapy can help with each ocular movement through a series of exercises!
Kelsey Smith
Vision Therapist
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