SACCADIC EYE-MOVEMENTS IN SCHIZOPHRENIC-PATIENTS

The nature of saccadic abnormalities in schizophrenia was investigated in three different paradigms: (1) the visually guided saccade; (2) th e antisaccade; and (3) the remembered saccade paradigm. Subjects compr ised 14 schizophrenic patients and 14 normal volunteers. Deficits in t he schizophrenic group were observed in the antisaccade and remembered saccade tasks, both of which were characterized by increased latency and reduced gain. Moreover, in the antisaccade task, schizophrenic pat ients showed an increased number of errors compared with control subje cts. Saccadic abnormalities in the patients were correlated with impai red performance on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test. These data suggest that schizophrenic patients have difficulty in inhibiting reflexive s accades and in producing voluntary saccades. The implications of these findings for a prefrontal cortex dysfunction involved in oculomotor c ontrol in schizophrenia are discussed. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Irela nd Ltd.