{Reference Type}: Case Reports
{Title}: Midbrain lesion-induced disconjugate gaze: a unifying circuit mechanism of ocular alignment?
{Author}: Friedrich MU;Schappe L;Prasad S;Friedrich H;Fox MD;Zwergal A;Zee DS;Faßbender K;Dillmann KU;
{Journal}: J Neurol
{Volume}: 271
{Issue}: 5
{Year}: 2024 May 14
{Factor}: 6.682
{DOI}: 10.1007/s00415-023-12155-6
{Abstract}: BACKGROUND: Disconjugate eye movements are essential for depth perception in frontal-eyed species, but their underlying neural substrates are largely unknown. Lesions in the midbrain can cause disconjugate eye movements. While vertically disconjugate eye movements have been linked to defective visuo-vestibular integration, the pathophysiology and neuroanatomy of horizontally disconjugate eye movements remains elusive.
METHODS: A patient with a solitary focal midbrain lesion was examined using detailed clinical ocular motor assessments, binocular videooculography and diffusion-weighted MRI, which was co-registered to a high-resolution cytoarchitectonic MR-atlas.
RESULTS: The patient exhibited both vertically and horizontally disconjugate eye alignment and nystagmus. Binocular videooculography showed a strong correlation of vertical and horizontal oscillations during fixation but not in darkness. Oscillation intensities and waveforms were modulated by fixation, illumination, and gaze position, suggesting shared visual- and vestibular-related mechanisms. The lesion was mapped to a functionally ill-defined area of the dorsal midbrain, adjacent to the posterior commissure and sparing nuclei with known roles in vertical gaze control.
CONCLUSIONS: A circumscribed region in the dorsal midbrain appears to be a key node for disconjugate eye movements in both vertical and horizontal planes. Lesioning this area produces a unique ocular motor syndrome mirroring hallmarks of developmental strabismus and nystagmus. Further circuit-level studies could offer pivotal insights into shared pathomechanisms of acquired and developmental disorders affecting eye alignment.