FLASH AND PATTERN-REVERSAL VISUAL EVOKED-POTENTIAL ABNORMALITIES IN INFANTS AND CHILDREN WITH CEREBRAL BLINDNESS

Visual evoked potentials (VEPs) were recorded of 60 infants and childr en with cerebral blindness, aged between six weeks and 10 years, and c ompared with age-matched normative data. Every patient had abnormal VE Ps. 18 had absent flash and pattern VEPs and 13 had atypical or atypic al and asymmetrical flash and pattern VEPs. Of the remaining 29, most had greater abnormality of pattern than of flash VEPs and greater abno rmalities over parietal and temporal than occipital areas. Eight patie nts had normal occipital responses to flash and five others had delaye d responses with normal morphology. One had normal occipital responses to pattern stimuli. All of these had abnormal late occipital response s or abnormal responses over the parietal and temporal areas. It is re commended that visual assessments using VEPs employ both flash and pat tern stimuli, that pre-occipital as well as occipital recordings be ma de and that tracings be compared with age-specific normative data.