Abnormal motoric laterality in strabismus and a hypothesis concerning its neurological origins

Abstract

A survey of the literature concerning motoric laterality in strabismus was undertaken. The assessment of manual and ocular dominance was based on a total of eleven studies conducted between 1934 and 1986. The average percentage of right-handedness in strabismics was 73.8%, whereas the average percentage of right-eyedness was 46.9%. Both figures are significantly lower than those obtained for the normal population. It is hypothesized that reduced right dominance in strabismics results from dysfunction of the otoliths and/or their higher brainstem pathways.