April 2014
Volume 55, Issue 13
Free
ARVO Annual Meeting Abstract  |   April 2014
Integrated Visual-Auditory Perception in Amblyopic Adults: A Study Using the McGurk Phenomenon
Author Affiliations & Notes
  • Michael Wan
    Program in Neuroscience and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
    Ophthalmology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA
  • Cindy Narinesingh
    Program in Neuroscience and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • Herbert C Goltz
    Program in Neuroscience and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
    Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • Manokaraananthan Chandrakumar
    Program in Neuroscience and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • Agnes MF Wong
    Program in Neuroscience and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
    Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • Footnotes
    Commercial Relationships Michael Wan, None; Cindy Narinesingh, None; Herbert Goltz, None; Manokaraananthan Chandrakumar, None; Agnes Wong, None
  • Footnotes
    Support None
Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science April 2014, Vol.55, 817. doi:
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      Michael Wan, Cindy Narinesingh, Herbert C Goltz, Manokaraananthan Chandrakumar, Agnes MF Wong; Integrated Visual-Auditory Perception in Amblyopic Adults: A Study Using the McGurk Phenomenon. Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2014;55(13):817.

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      © ARVO (1962-2015); The Authors (2016-present)

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Abstract

Purpose: Although classically defined as a developmental disorder characterized by a loss of visual acuity, there is growing evidence that amblyopia affects several higher order perceptual processes. The impact of amblyopia on multisensory integration has not been investigated previously. The McGurk effect is a perceptual phenomenon resulting from an interaction between hearing and vision in speech perception. The purpose of this study was to assess visual-auditory integration in adults with amblyopia using the McGurk effect.

Methods: This is a prospective, single-blinded, comparative study. Adults with a history of amblyopia and visually normal controls completed a background questionnaire and underwent a baseline assessment of visual acuity, stereoacuity and eye alignment. Participants were then shown a standard video of congruent (control) and incongruent (McGurk) trials consisting of various combinations of visual and auditory phonemes and asked to report what they heard.

Results: Twenty-two adult subjects with amblyopia (19 female, mean age 32.8 years) and 25 visually normal controls (16 female, mean age 31.8 years) participated in the study. All participants performed at ceiling for congruent trials, with mean accuracy for all groups and viewing conditions exceeding 98%. With incongruent trials, participants with amblyopia were significantly less likely to report hearing a fused phoneme (i.e. demonstrate the McGurk effect) compared to controls (p = 0.01). While this difference was greatest during amblyopic eye viewing, it was also present during fellow eye and binocular viewing. No correlations were found between accuracy and visual acuity or stereoacuity.

Conclusions: This is the first study to demonstrate that adults with amblyopia have a lasting impairment of their ability to integrate visual and auditory signals, independent of visual acuity. Visual-auditory integration is an important perceptual ability and a key component of speech perception. The results of this study add to the growing body of evidence that amblyopia causes an array of deficits beyond the visual system.

Keywords: 417 amblyopia • 757 visual development: infancy and childhood • 497 development  
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