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Study may aid early diagnosis of Parkinson's, attention deficit. Canwest News ServiceJuly 13, 2009 KINGSTON, Ont. - Studies into how quickly and accurately we are able to control our eye movements could help diagnose attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and the early onset of Parkinson's disease, researchers at Queen's University said Monday. ``An important aspect of what makes us human is the ability to control our behaviour,'' physiology professor Douglas Munoz said. ``Our project investigates how the brain provides this control by observing eye movements.'' In the study, participants from a wide range of age groups were placed in a magnetic resonance imaging unit that measures and records brain activity. They were then shown a series of lights and asked to move their eyes toward or away from the illumination. The speed and accuracy of their eye movements were recorded and correlated to the activity being documented in specific areas of their brains. ``In preliminary experiments, kids with ADHD could not help but look at the light no matter if they were asked to look away or not. Normal brain activity was also decreased,'' Munoz said. ``When they took their ADHD medication the success rates, and the activity in certain areas of the brain, increased. This test could, therefore, be used to examine the effectiveness of new ADHD medication.'' He said the same holds true for people with Parkinson's disease, a neurological disorder that affects the brain's motor control systems. ``In preliminary experiments, patients with the disease had a consistent pattern of eye movement time and brain activity. Introducing the tests in clinics as part of regular health exams could result in earlier diagnosis of Parkinson's, allowing the disease progression to be controlled with diet and medication,'' Munoz said. The researchers were also able to see which sections of the participant's brains were active, and which were less active, with age. Munoz said the studies will continue over the next five years. The project has received close to $1 million in funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn