INTERACTION OF SACCADIC AND VESTIBULAR MECHANISMS IN COMBINED EYE-HEAD GAZE SHIFTS

Saccades are the only purely volitional eye movements available to pri mates. They are used extensively to acquire new or interesting targets in the visual environment. Most patients with saccadic disorders are referred to neurologists. Patients complaining of disorientation, howe ver, are often presumed to be suffering from a vestibular disorder. Ve stibular and saccadic physiology has been studied mostly in isolation of each other. We examine the interaction of saccadic burst neurons an d vestibular signals to achieve accurate gaze shifts.