Specific eye-head coordination enhances vision in progressive lens wearers.

Abstract

In uncorrected vision all combinations of eye and head positions are visually equivalent; thus, there is no need for a specific modification of eye-head coordination in young healthy observers. In contrast, the quality of visual input indeed strongly depends on eye position in the majority of healthy elderly drivers, namely in progressive additional lens (PALs) wearers. For a given distance, only specific combinations of eye and head position provide clear vision in a progressive lens wearer. However, although head movements are an integral part of gaze behavior, it is not known if eye-head coordination takes part in the enhancement of visual input in healthy individuals. In the current study we determined changes in eye-head coordination in progressive lens wearers in challenging tasks with high cognitive load, in the situation of driving. During a real-world drive on an urban round track in Stuttgart, gaze movements and head movements were measured in 17 PAL wearers and eye-head coordination was compared to 27 controls with unrestricted vision. Head movement behavior, specific to progressive lens wearers, was determined in head gain and temporal properties of head movements. Furthermore, vertical eye-head coordination was consistent only among PAL wearers. The observed differences in eye-head coordination clearly demonstrate a contribution of head movements in the enhancement of visual input in the healthy human visual system.