Frontal+Eye+Fields

The frontal eye fields (FEF) are located along the superior lateral convexity and is part of the premotor area but also encompasses all of area 8 as well as portions of areas 9.

-eye movements: appears to program the corresponding primary areas so as to guide gaze shifts - in conjunction with superior colliculus and lower brainstem. -maintains head movements: in response to predominantly visual, but also tactile and auditory stimuli -Focusing attention on certain regions in the visual field, particularly the fovea -Making smooth eye, eye-hand and hand-mouth pursuit movements -Perhaps guiding eye movements while reading and when writing
 * Primary Function:**

8, 9 (portions)
 * Broadman's Areas**

-Primary and association visual cortices in the occipital lobe (17, 18, 19) -Auditory association area (22) in temporal lobe -Multimodal visual association area (20) in the temporal lobe -Somatosensory association area Hence, the FEF receives information concerning the auditory, tactual, and visual environment and is multimodally responsive.
 * Connections From:**

-Caudate -Superior Colliculus -Oculomotor nucleus
 * Connections with:**

-Complete saccades of the eyes -Pupillary dilation
 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 13.3333339691162px;">Electrical Stimulation: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium;">-Abnormalities in fixation <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium;">-Decreased sensitivity to stimuli throughout the visual field <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium;">-Slowed visual scanning and searching <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium;">-Inattention and Neglect -Mislocation of Sounds -S<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium;">ome subgroups of "schizophrenics" have been shown to suffer from smooth pursuit and sacadic abnormalities, which, based on neuropsychological tests, have been interpreted as indicative of FEF disturbances
 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">Injury/Damage: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium;">Mild Lesions: -Lessened visual search performance -Lessened attention to visual detail or focus on one particular detail - possible correlate to dyslexia

Severe Lesions: - Searching and responsiveness lessened to<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium;"> complete unilateral neglect and failure to attend to any and all stimuli falling to one side of the body (particularly right side) -Confabulation (particularly with right side or bilateral) ---<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium;">May tend to make leaps of judgment and impulsively guess and describe the meaning of the whole based on the perception of a fragment. Erroneously extrapolate from an isolated detail around which they construct and confabulate a conclusion i.e. focusing only on a "drummer boy" in a battle scene they may describe the picture as being about "musicians" or "a rock band". (particularly right side) -Capgras syndrome (particularly if bilateral) -R<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium;">eduplicative paramnesia (particularly if bilateral)

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 1.5;">In addition to visual tracking and supporting focused visual attention, neurons in the FEF demonstrate anticipatory activity; that is, firing before a response is made. In fact, these neurons will continue to fire at a high rate until the behavior is initiated. Yet other cells begin to fire only when the waiting period becomes prolonged. In this regard, neurons in the FEF probably exert a countering influence so that attention does not drift and attention and eye position remains stabilized and focused on the primary retinal target.
 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">Notes: **

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">Moreover, cells in the FEF will fire slectively in response to stationary and moving stimuli, to objects which are within arms reach, as well as to tactual stimuli applied to the hands and/or mouth. As an object approaches the face and mouth, some of these cells correspondingly increase their rate of activitity.


 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">Visual Scanning Deficits and Neglect. **