Eye Movement Recording as an Early Differential Diagnostic Tool for Alzheimer/Depression

Summary

The global aim of our study is to validate eye movement recording as an early differential diagnostic tool, in order to discriminate as early as possible between neurodegenerative dementias of Alzheimer type and depressive pseudodementias (DPD). The investigators want to put forward idiosyncratic oculomotor characteristics of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and DPD respectively. Eye movements are sensitive markers of neurological diseases and can be used in a variety of clinical neurological syndromes.

This study compares 3 groups of 98 patients: patients suffering of AD and DPD and healthy persons. The patients AD will be recruited in the Memory Centre of Resources and Research of Besançon and patients DPD will be selected in the psychiatric department of the University Hospital of Besançon. The control participants will be recruited from the entourage of researchers and patients. The selection of participants in the 3 different groups is based on clinical examinations in psychiatry and neurology and neuropsychological assessments. After giving informed consent, patients will be evaluated by a psychiatrist and a neuropsychologist. The complete assessment takes 150 minutes.

After having set up patients, eye movements will be recorded using video-oculography techniques. The following tasks are performed: the basic dynamic eye movements (latency, hypometric and hypermetric saccades, reaction time, saccade speed, accuracy, pupil diameter) will be evaluated by the pro-saccade, anti-saccade and predictive saccade tasks. The emotional connotation tasks will be assessed by scan of images pair with emotional connotation and portrait analysis. The assessment takes 30 minutes.

This study will include 3 groups:

* an Alzheimer group;
* a depressed group;
* a control group with healthy persons. The population of this study will be comprised of patients over age 60 with a visual acuity over 9/10, not diagnosed with eye disease and not neuropsychological sequelae that could disrupt the functioning oculomotor.

These people will be recruited on a voluntary basis, after notification and consent in the research center, the Psychiatry Clinical Department of the University Hospital of Besançon. This study was conducted over a period of 36 months.

Conditions

• Alzheimer Disease
• Depression

Interventions

OTHER

Eye movements will be recorded using video-oculography techniques based on both the corneal reflection principle and an infra-red light beam

. The system named H6-HSCN by Applied Science Laboratories (ASL®) helps keep the patient's head fixed on a support, important for the elderly population. This system allows to capture data with good temporal resolution (sampling at 360Hz) and good spatial resolution (accuracy of 0.1° of visual angle) at a distance of about 70 cm from the screen test with a visual angle of 32.6°. Results will be processed with ASL Result Software.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Laboratoire de psychologie EA 3188

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Dijon

  collaborator OTHER

• Centre Hospitalier de Novillars

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Besancon

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Pierre VANDEL, Prof · Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Besancon

Study Design

Allocation

NON_RANDOMIZED

Purpose

DIAGNOSTIC

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

60 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2010-04-30

Primary Completion

2018-01-31

Completion

2018-07-31

Countries

• France

Study Locations