Computerized Eye-Tracking Training Improves the Saccadic Eye Movements of Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Abnormal saccadic eye movements, such as longer anti-saccade latency and lower pro-saccade accuracy, are common in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of computerized eye-tracking training on improving saccadic eye movements in children with ADHD. Eighteen children with ADHD (mean age = 8.8 years, 10 males) were recruited and assigned to either the experimental (n = 9) or control group (n = 9). The experimental group underwent an accumulated 240 min of eye-tracking training within two weeks, whereas the control group engaged in web game playing for the same amount of time. Saccadic performances were assessed using the anti- and pro-saccade tasks before and after training. Compared to the baseline, only the children who underwent the eye-tracking training showed significant improvements in saccade latency and accuracy in the anti- and pro-saccade tasks, respectively. In contrast, the control group exhibited no significant changes. These preliminary findings support the use of eye-tracking training as a safe non-pharmacological intervention for improving the saccadic eye movements of children with ADHD.

[1]  T. Lee,et al.  Eye-Tracking Training Improves Inhibitory Control in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder , 2021, Brain sciences.

[2]  S. Liversedge,et al.  The Differential Effect of Anxiety and ADHD Symptoms on Inhibitory Control and Sustained Attention for Threat Stimuli: A Go/No-Go Eye-Movement Study , 2020, Journal of attention disorders.

[3]  Yuan-Shuo Chan,et al.  Saccade eye movement in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder , 2020, Nordic journal of psychiatry.

[4]  C. Constantinidis,et al.  Neural Substrates of Inhibitory Control Maturation in Adolescence , 2019, Trends in Neurosciences.

[5]  L. P. Zapata,et al.  Novel Interactive Eye-Tracking Game for Training Attention in Children With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. , 2019, The primary care companion for CNS disorders.

[6]  Stefanie I. Becker,et al.  Dwelling on distractors varying in target-distractor similarity. , 2019, Acta psychologica.

[7]  Brian D Corneil,et al.  Frontal Eye Field Inactivation Diminishes Superior Colliculus Activity, But Delayed Saccadic Accumulation Governs Reaction Time Increases , 2017, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[8]  Stefanie I. Becker,et al.  Dwelling, rescanning, and skipping of distractors explain search efficiency in difficult search better than guidance by the target , 2017 .

[9]  Genevieve Mackenzie,et al.  Rethinking Intelligence Quotient Exclusion Criteria Practices in the Study of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder , 2016, Front. Psychol..

[10]  Jeffrey D Schall,et al.  Visuomotor Functions in the Frontal Lobe. , 2015, Annual review of vision science.

[11]  Mark D’Esposito,et al.  Dissociable Roles of Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex and Frontal Eye Fields During Saccadic Eye Movements , 2015, Front. Hum. Neurosci..

[12]  D. Munoz,et al.  Pupil size reveals preparatory processes in the generation of pro‐saccades and anti‐saccades , 2015, The European journal of neuroscience.

[13]  John O. Willis,et al.  Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children–Fourth Edition , 2014 .

[14]  Beatriz Luna,et al.  Longitudinal Growth Curves of Brain Function Underlying Inhibitory Control through Adolescence , 2013, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[15]  Indre V. Viskontas,et al.  Anti-Saccade Performance Predicts Executive Function and Brain Structure in Normal Elders , 2011, Cognitive and behavioral neurology : official journal of the Society for Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology.

[16]  R. Joober,et al.  Relation between therapeutic response and side effects induced by methylphenidate as observed by parents and teachers of children with ADHD , 2011, BMC psychiatry.

[17]  W. Reith,et al.  Impairment of fronto-striatal and parietal cerebral networks correlates with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) psychopathology in adults — A functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study , 2010, Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging.

[18]  C. Klein,et al.  Cognitive correlates of anti-saccade task performance , 2010, Experimental Brain Research.

[19]  Masao Aihara,et al.  Saccade eye movements as a quantitative measure of frontostriatal network in children with ADHD , 2010, Brain and Development.

[20]  Veit Stuphorn,et al.  Role of supplementary eye field in saccade initiation: executive, not direct, control. , 2010, Journal of neurophysiology.

[21]  Jonathan W. Peirce,et al.  PsychoPy—Psychophysics software in Python , 2007, Journal of Neuroscience Methods.

[22]  Beatriz Luna,et al.  Maturation of Executive Function in Autism , 2007, Biological Psychiatry.

[23]  D. Munoz,et al.  Altered control of visual fixation and saccadic eye movements in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. , 2003, Journal of neurophysiology.

[24]  C. Klein,et al.  Effects of methylphenidate on saccadic responses in patients with ADHD , 2002, Experimental Brain Research.

[25]  B. Fischer,et al.  Voluntary Saccadic Control in Dyslexia , 2000, Perception.

[26]  J. Findlay.  Saccade Target Selection During Visual Search , 1997, Vision Research.

[27]  V. Douglas,et al.  Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and the frontal lobe syndrome , 1992, Brain and Cognition.

[28]  W. Beatty,et al.  Performance of children with ADHD on tests sensitive to frontal lobe dysfunction. , 1990, Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

[29]  Douglas P. Munoz,et al.  Using eye movements to probe development and dysfunction , 2007 .

[30]  Rudolf Groner,et al.  Attention and eye movement control: An overview , 2005, European archives of psychiatry and neurological sciences.

[31]  C. Klein,et al.  Development of pro- and antisaccades in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and healthy controls. , 2003, Psychophysiology.

[32]  D. Munoz,et al.  Control of Purposive Saccadic Eye Movements and Visual Fixation in Children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder , 1999 .