Smooth pursuit eye movements and fixation werestudied, using quantitative techniques, ineight parents ofchronic schizophrenics. Only one subject showed a statistically significant excess of square wave jerks (SWJ) and other saccadic intrusions during fixation. All subjects were capable of normal smooth pursuit gains during ramp pursuit. Six subjects, however, made 'anticipatory saccades' which took the eyes ahead of the target; they spent considerable time fixating off-target. These hitherto undescribed movements, which superficially resemble SWJ, appear to represent an involuntary attentional disturbance in these clinically normal individuals.

We measured saccadic latencies in patients with Alzheimer's dementia (AD) and other types of dementia. The saccad ic latencies for both groups were consid erably longer than those for age-matched controls. The prolongation was as exten sive in patients with other types of dementia as it was in those with AD. There was no correlation between latency and the severity of the dementia.

No abstract