Evidence of midline retinal nasotemporal overlap in healthy humans: A model for foveal sparing in hemianopia?

The existence of midline retinal nasotemporal overlap in humans is controversial. Here we used the Poffenberger paradigm and monocular vision to assess the existence of a midline retinal area projecting to both hemispheres and of a possible differential contribution of the two hemiretinae. When brief visual stimuli were presented at 1° eccentricity they were responded to equally quickly with either hand while at 6° the hand on the same side as the stimulated hemifield was consistently faster than the contralateral hand. This pattern of results is consistent with a nasotemporal overlap at 1° and a complete lateralization at 6°. Both hemiretinae contribute to the overlap area which can be considered as responsible for foveal sparing in hemianopic patients.