An optokinetic drum is a rotating instrument to test vision

Visual system

The visual system is the part of the central nervous system which enables organisms to process visual detail, as well as enabling several non-image forming photoresponse functions. It interprets information from visible light to build a representation of the surrounding world...

 in which individuals are seated facing the wall of the drum. The interior surface of the drum is normally striped; thus, as the drum rotates, the subject's eyes are subject to a moving visual field while the subject remains stationary. The speed of the drum and the duration of the test may be varied. Control groups are placed in a drum without stripes or rotation. After exposure to the rotating drum, subjects are surveyed to determine their susceptibility to motion sickness

Motion sickness

Motion sickness or kinetosis, also known as travel sickness, is a condition in which a disagreement exists between visually perceived movement and the vestibular system's sense of movement...

. A study in which the optokinetic drum was used to test the symptoms of the sopite syndrome

Sopite syndrome

The sopite syndrome is a neurological disorder that relates symptoms of fatigue, drowsiness, and mood changes to prolonged periods of motion. The sopite syndrome has been attributed to motion-induced drowsiness such as that experienced by a baby when rocked...

 showed increased mood changes

Mood swing

-Associated disorders:Mood swings are commonly associated with mood disorders including bipolar disorder and depression. In patients with cases of bipolar disorder, the patient experiences serious mood swings that last for days or even weeks...

 in response to the visual cues, though these effects were compounded by other environmental factors such as boredom

Boredom

Boredom is an emotional state experienced when an individual is without any activity or is not interested in their surroundings. The first recorded use of the word boredom is in the novel Bleak House by Charles Dickens, written in 1852, in which it appears six times, although the expression to be a...

 and lack of activity

Physical exercise

Physical exercise is any bodily activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness. It is performed for various reasons including strengthening muscles and the cardiovascular system, honing athletic skills, weight loss or maintenance, as well as for the purpose of...

.

See also

• Electrooculography
  Electrooculography
  Electrooculography is a technique for measuring the resting potential of the retina. The resulting signal is called the electrooculogram. The main applications are in ophthalmological diagnosis and in recording eye movements...
  
  
• International Society for Clinical Electrophysiology of Vision
  International Society for Clinical Electrophysiology of Vision
  The International Society for Clinical Electrophysiology of Vision is an association that promotes research and applications of electrophysiological methods in clinical diagnosis of ophthalmological diseases...
  
  
• Orthoptist
• Nystagmus
  Nystagmus
  Nystagmus is a condition of involuntary eye movement, acquired in infancy or later in life, that may result in reduced or limited vision.There are two key forms of Nystagmus: pathological and physiological, with variations within each type. Nystagmus may be caused by congenital disorders,...