Blog: EYE-SYNC Webinar: Interpreting Smooth Pursuit Results

In our most recent webinar, we sat down with our CCO Scott Anderson, to review the Smooth Pursuit assessment. During this presentation, Scott explained what EYE-SYNC users should know, what to should look for, and how to get the most out of what the results are telling us. Many questions were asked during the Q&A, so this blog provides answers to some of the questions asked. Thank you to everyone who registered, make sure to stay tuned for Saccade and VOR result interpretation webinars in the coming months!

1. How do we train medical professionals to read and interpret results?

We recommend that all medical professionals be trained by our on-boarding team to correctly administer and interpret results.

2. In regards to re-test effects, will individuals do better the second time because they have already done the test?

Our studies have shown a test-retest reliability of near 0.9, demonstrating minimal learning bias between test periods in normal subjects. Clinically, however, we have experienced improvement in impaired patients when tested before and after treatment interventions.

3. For the elderly, does disorganized Pursuit correlate to balance issues or risk of falling?

It may be a risk factor. Typically, disorganized pursuit can be the result of two things – age related deterioration of pursuit performance, or in subjects with prior history of concussion who have recovered but not had formal rehabilitation. These patients improve, but only to a certain point, and the more time that has passed since their initial injury, the more resistant to meaningful improvement they have become.

4. Can you please give parameters or a more exact definition of sleep deprivation?

Sleep deprivation is defined as prolonged periods of insufficient sleep, including multiple periods of waking during sleep or a longer period without sleep. In our studies, we have looked primarily at the effects of single nights with disturbed sleep in adults.

5. Can patients present with forward saccades and be sleep deprived?

Absolutely. Sleep disturbance is one of the most common associated conditions after concussion, so we often see patients present with anticipatory saccades while having increased spatial errors in the vertical direction. It is important in these instances to address and resolve the disturbed sleep pattern initially, so that symptoms can be accurately correlated to the dysfunction you are treating.

6. How often do you suggest assessing the smooth pursuit after injury/incident?

In my experience, I found it useful to conduct on a daily basis, but I know that is not always feasible. As a result, we have typically recommended every 48-72 hours, depending on whether the patient is actively receiving treatment during that time. I highly recommend re-testing the patient as a function of determining treatment effectiveness.

7. I note a lot of people see double when they also have convergence insufficiency secondary to proximity of the screen. Do you have any tips to allow for inclusion in use of EYE-SYNC with these patients? Would patching to get monocular data work?

Fantastic question. We commonly recommend patching as a mechanism to capture monocular visual function using EYE-SYNC, and as a treatment strategy to instigate improvement of disconjugate gaze. Of course, in some cases, these patients may also require temporary lenses while they actively work to resolve binocular or monocular diplopia.

8. Why do you recommend looking at the PDF report that shows each eye result? And what do you look for when comparing right and left eye results?

I want to determine the quality of teaming. Binocular coordination can often be disrupted in many neurologic conditions, so it is important to evaluate how well the brain is moving the eyes together. If this is abnormal, you know immediately the patient has a problem that formulates the basis for treatment. In non-acute cases, this can be developmental, which may require more substantial evaluation and treatment efforts.