Abstract
AFTER drinking a large dose of ethyl alcohol (1 or 2 g of alcohol kg−1 of body weight), a phenomenon called positional alcohol nystagmus (PAN) occurs1,2. Nystagmus is an involuntary oscillating movement of the eyeballs in which they repeatedly turn slowly in one direction and fast in the reverse direction. The nystagmus that starts 30 min or so after drinking alcohol (PAN I) is called positional because it occurs only when the head is held in certain positions relative to gravity. When the head is held with the right side down, the eyes turn (with a frequency of roughly two complete oscillation s−1) fast to the right, slowly to the left, fast to the right, and so on. Nystagmus is named after the prominent fast movements, and this nystagmus is called nystagmus ‘to the right’. When the head is held with the left side down after alcohol, the resulting nystagmus is to the left.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
de Kleyn, A., and Verteegh, C., Acta. Otolaryngol., 14, 356 (1930).
Aschan, G., Bergstedt, M., and Stahle, J., Acta. Otolaryngol. Supplement 129 (1956).
Lowenstein, O., Prog. Brain Res., 37, 19 (1972).
Money, K. E., Physiol. Rev., 50, 1 (1970).
Nito, Y., Johnson, W. H., Money, K. E., and Ireland, P. E., Acta. Otolaryngol., 58, 65 (1964).
Money, K. E., Johnson, W. H., and Corlett, B. M. A., Am. J. Physiol., 208, 1065 (1965).
ter Braak, J. W. G., Arch. f. ges. Physiol., 238, 327 (1938).
Money, K. E., Bonen, L., Beatty, J. D., Kuehn, L. A., Sokoloff, M., and Weaver, R. S., Am. J. Physiol., 220, 140 (1971).
Clark, B., and Stewart, J. D., Aerospace Med., 40, 952 (1969).
Oman, C. M., and Young, L. R., Acta. Otolaryngol., 74, 324 (1972).
Suzuki, J. I., Prog. Brain Res., 37, 507 (1972).
Goldberg, L., Psychosom. Med., 28, 570 (1966).
Hill, R. J., Collins, W. E., and Schroeder, D. J., Ann. Otol., 82, 103 (1973).
Taylor, N. B. G., Hunter, J., and Johnson, W. H., Can. J. Biochem. Physiol., 35, 1017 (1957).
Barber, H. O., Laryngoscope, 74, 891 (1964).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
MONEY, K., MYLES, W. Heavy water nystagmus and effects of alcohol. Nature 247, 404–405 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1038/247404a0
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/247404a0
- Springer Nature Limited
This article is cited by
-
Dizziness and vertigo syndromes viewed with a historical eye
Journal of Neurology (2018)
-
The Density Difference of Cupula and Endolymph Changes the Mechanics of Semicircular Canals
Microgravity Science and Technology (2011)