The impact of eye dominance on fixation stability in school-aged children

J Eye Mov Res. 2023 Dec 31;16(3):10.16910/jemr.16.3.6. doi: 10.16910/jemr.16.3.6. eCollection 2023.

Abstract

The aim of the study was to analyze the stability of dominant and non-dominant eye fixations, as well as the influence of development on fixation stability. The study analyzed fixation stability in 280 school-age children, ranging in age from 7 to 12 years old. Fixation stability was determined by calculating the bivariate contour ellipse area (BCEA). During the fixation task, eye movements were recorded using the Tobii Pro Fusion eye tracking device at a 250 Hz sampling frequency. The results indicate that the fixation stability of dominant and non-dominant eyes, as well as the fixation stability of each eye regardless of dominance, improves as children grow older. It was found that for 7 and 8- year-old children, fixation in the dominant eye is significantly more stable than in the non-dominant eye, while in older children, there is no significant difference in fixation stability between the dominant and non-dominant eye.

Keywords: bivariate contour ellipse area; eye dominance; eye tracking; fixation stability; school-age children.