Michael C. Schubert

Compensatory saccades (CSs) are recruited by individuals with unilateral vestibular deafferentation (UVD) to compensate for an impaired vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR). The effectiveness of CS in multiple sclerosis (MS), a central vestibular impairment, is unknown. We show that in UVD and in MS, covert CSs compensate for reduced VOR gain and minimize gaze position error (GPE), yet in >50% of individuals with MS, overt CS worsened GPE, suggesting unique roles for peripheral and central vestibular inputs.