Dopaminergic Control of Movement Change Detection

Parkinson’s disease is a neurological movement disorder characterized by dopaminergic degeneration in the basal ganglia. Although motor abnormalities define its clinical presentation, non-motor symptoms—including visual symptoms—are also frequent. Interestingly, these can parallel movement abnormalities. For example, it has been shown that patients with Parkinson’s disease have particular difficulty detecting sudden changes in motion or in the trajectories of ongoing movements. In this study, we aimed to systematically determine the thresholds at which patients perceive sudden motion changes when these changes are presented without contextual cues. Furthermore, we hypothesized that dopaminergic treatment regimens not only influence motor abilities but may also alter how patients perceive speed changes in their visual field.