Abstract
Purpose :
Spatial and temporal coordination between eye and hand movements is essential for the performance of most daily activities. Studies with adults demonstrate a highly stereotypical coordination pattern during reaching and grasping tasks. Specifically, eye movements precede the hand by ~100 ms, and the eyes fixate on the object during a manipulation task. To date, the developmental profile of hand-eye coordination has not been examined in children. The purpose of this study was to characterize age-related changes in temporal hand-eye coordination in typically developing children.
Methods :
Children (n=28, age=9.0±0.6yrs) and adolescents (n=29; age=12.3±1.3yrs) were assessed during the performance of a bead threading task, which requires precision grasping and placement. A group of adults (n=12, age=22±.2.2yrs) were also tested. Eye and hand movements were recorded concurrently using the Eyelink 2 eye tracker and the Optotrak motion capture system. Temporal hand-eye coordination was assessed by calculating the latency of the motor responses for the primary movement of the eyes and hand towards the bead, and the secondary movements towards the needle, as well as the duration of eye fixation when grasping and placing the bead on the needle.
Results :
Statistical analysis revealed significant differences between the groups of children, adolescents, and adults for all measures ( p<0.05). When reaching for the bead, the eye-hand latency difference was longer in children (174±16ms) compared to adolescents (134±10ms) and adults (117±8ms). Similarly, the fixation duration during grasping was longer in children (243±21ms) compared to adolescents (146±16ms) and adults (165±17ms). There was also a longer delay between the eye and hand movements when reaching towards the needle in children (38±11ms) compared to adolescents (7±11ms) and adults (12±15ms). Fixation duration on the needle while placing the bead was longer in children (657±31ms) and adolescents (497±24ms) compared to adults (336±28ms).
Conclusions :
Temporal hand-eye coordination pattern for a precision grasping and placement task becomes more efficient during adolescence in typically developing children with normal vision. Further investigation is required to determine the impact of decorrelated binocular vision on the development of hand-eye coordination profile.
This is a 2021 ARVO Annual Meeting abstract.