Memantine and Gabapentin May Improve Vision in Congenital Nystagmus

In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, researchers investigated the effect of treatment with either gabapentin or memantine in 47 patients with congenital nystagmus. Twenty patients had idiopathic nystagmus, and 27 had secondary nystagmus associated with poor vision due to entities such as albinism, achromatopsia, and optic nerve atrophy or hypoplasia. Patients were randomized to receive memantine, gabapentin, or placebo for 56 days. The primary outcome measure was visual acuity. Secondary outcome measures were nystagmus intensity and foveation on eye-movement recording, and patients’ subjective ratings of changes in visual function and social function.

At the end of treatment, mean visual acuity improved similarly in the m…