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. 2024 Apr 9;16:3–16. doi: 10.2147/EB.S384769

Table 1.

Key Terms in Ocular Motor Research, Examinations and Analysis and Their Definitions

Term Definition
Catch Up Saccades Rapid eye movements to adjust the eye’s position to refocus following a head movment as part of a faulty vestibulo-ocular reflex.
Convergence Eye movements where the eyes move inward, towards each other.
Divergence Eye movements where the eyes move outward, away from each other.
Drift Slow, involuntary eye movements during attempted fixation.
Electro-oculography Measuring eye movements by detecting electrical potentials.
Error Rate The frequency of errors in reaching the target during eye movements.
Fixation Maintenance of the gaze on a single location.
Hypermetric Saccades that overshoot the intended target.
Hypometric Saccades that fall short of the intended target.
Infrared Oculography Tracking eye movements using infrared light.
Latency The delay between the initiation and the onset of an eye movement.
Microsaccades Small, involuntary eye movements during fixation to refresh the image on the retina.
Nystagmus Involuntary, rhythmic oscillation of the eyes, often indicating underlying issues.
Pursuit Smooth eye movements to track moving objects.
Pursuit Gain The ratio of eye velocity to target velocity during pursuit movements.
Pursuit Speed The speed at which the eye moves to follow a moving target.
Saccade Rapid, ballistic eye movements to shift gaze from one point to another.
Saccade Accuracy The precision of the eye in landing on the target during a saccade.
Saccade Peak Velocity The highest speed reached by the eye during a saccade.
Saccade Speed The average speed of the eye during a saccade.
Saccadic Bradykinesia Decrement in the velocity and amplitude of repetitive horizontal saccades, often seen in Parkinson’s disease.
Saccadic Intrusions Unwanted saccades that disrupt fixation.
Square Wave Jerks Small, involuntary eye movements away from and back to the fixation point.
Ocular Tremor Involuntary, rhythmic oscillation, affecting eye movements.
Video-oculography Tracking eye movements using video imaging.
Vestibulo-ocular reflex Mechanism that stabilizes vision by producing eye movements that counteract head movements, ensuring clear vision while in motion.