It is known that triggering of saccades for reading and exploration is strongly influenced by sustained attention. In cooperation with Manfred Mackeben, PhD, at the Smith Kettlewell Eye Research Institute, San Francisco, USA, we performed several studies on sustained focal attention.

We found by MEG-recording that visual stimulus discrimination is modulated by sustained focal attention.  Furthermore, we showed for the first time that loci of high attentional capabilities in the parafoveal visual field are candidates for future eccentric fixation loci (preferred retinal locus, PRL) in patients with maculopathy. This was confirmed by a recent study with simulated scotoma.

These findings are of significance for patients with a developing central scotoma and an expected unfavorable PRL-location and provide the option for a preventive attention training.

References:

1. Altpeter E, Mackeben M, *Trauzettel-Klosinski S (2000) The importance of sustained attention for patients with maculopathies.  Vision Research 40: 1539-1547 https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/vision-research
2. Pilz K, Braun C, Altpeter E, MacKeben M, *Trauzettel-Klosinski S (2006) Modulation of visual stimulus discrimination by sustained focal attention: an MEG study. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 47 (3): 1225-1229 https://iovs.arvojournals.org/article.aspx?articleid=2182788
3. Barraza-Bernal MJ, Ivanov IV, Nill S, Rifai K, Trauzettel-Klosinski S, Wahl S (2017) Can positions in the visual field with high attentional capabilities be good candidates for a new preferred retinal locus? Vision Res 140: 1-12 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0042698917301475?via%3Dihub