Fuzzy clustering based methods for nystagmus movements detection in electronystagmography signal

The analysis of optokinetic nystagmus (OKN) provides valuable information about the condition of human vision system. One of the phenomena that is used in the medical diagnosis is optokinetic nystagmus. Nystagmus are voluntary or involuntarily eye movements being a response to a stimuli which activate the optokinetic systems. The electronystagmography (ENG) signal corresponding to the nystagmus has a form of a saw tooth waveform with fast components related to saccades. The accurate detection of the saccades in the ENG signal is the base for the further estimation of the nystagmus characteristic. The proposed algorithm is based on the proper filtering of the ENG signal providing a waveform with amplitude peaks corresponding the fast eyes rotation. The correct recognition of the local maxima of the signal is obtained by the means of fuzzy c-means clustering (FCM). The paper presents three variants of saccades detection algorithm based on the FCM. The performance of the procedures was investigated using the artificial as well as the real optokinetic nystagmus cycles. The proposed method provides high detection sensitivity and allows for the automatic and precise determination of the saccades location in the preprocessed ENG signal.