Focus Builder 4.7

Focus Builder is optimized for use on an iPad.

Eye movements are a powerful method to exercise the brain and induce long-term changes, known as plasticity. The "Focus Builder" application offers a range of exercises that challenge users to purposefully engage in eye movements of different patterns, speeds, and directions, scientifically proven to activate specific brain regions based on the type of eye movement performed.

This application is specifically tailored for Functional Neurology specialists and their patients. Currently, there is no alternative app that delivers these precise exercises. For optimal outcomes, patients are advised to seek guidance from a Functional Neurologist to tailor the use of this app according to their individual requirements and gain the utmost therapeutic benefits.

The app encompasses three types of eye movements that can yield significant therapeutic advantages, all of which are accessible within its interface.

1. Pursuits (slow eye movements): This type involves smooth pursuit eye movements that enable precise tracking of moving objects. Individuals typically require a visual stimulus to initiate pursuit, with targets moving at velocities exceeding 30°/s necessitating catch-up saccades.
2. Saccades (fast eye movements): Saccades refer to rapid, simultaneous eye movements in a unified direction, governed by the frontal eye fields (FEF) or the superior colliculus. They play a role in fixation, swift gaze shifts, and the fast phase of optokinetic nystagmus.
3. Anti-saccades (look away): This task exemplifies the cognitive control present in our behavior. Participants must resist the instinctual urge to look at a sudden visual target in their peripheral vision and instead shift their gaze in the opposite direction. Successful completion involves the suppression of automatic saccades, a challenge for individuals with disorders affecting the frontal lobes or basal ganglia.

The benefits of these eye exercises extend across various brain functions, enhancing:

• Executive function/behavior
• Attention
• Concentration
• Impulse control
• Social behavior
• Motivation
• Goal-directed behavior