Imaging of eye movement with fast MRI

Purpose: Imaging of eye movement disorders has so far been restricted to the semifunctional cine mode of CT and MRI. Since real-time imaging of eye movement is necessary to investigate dynamic disorders, the aim of our study was to implement a fast MR technique to investigate eye movement in a real time mode. Method: Six healthy volunteers and three patients suffering from end-point nystagmus were examined with fast MR sequences while performing the following eye movements: holding different gaze positions, reading a defined text to demonstrate saccadic movements, and holding a primary gaze position and maximal end-point position to cause nystagmus when present. Results: In all cases, we were able to delineate eye movement with fast MRI. Anatomic and functional information could be obtained simultaneously for the first time through observation of saccadic and pursuit eye movements. Conclusion: Fast MRI allows for the assessment of dynamic eye movement without the restrictions of cine mode and is able to provide the clinician with additional information in the evaluation of functional movement disorders.