Objectives Symptoms of three-dimensional (3D) sickness, such as intoxication and eye fatigue, have been observed in subjects viewing 3D films and vary according to the image quality and visual environment. In addition, the influence of stereoscopic vision on the incidence of 3D sickness has not been explored sufficiently. Therefore, it is important to examine the safety of viewing virtual 3D content. Methods The present study examines the effects of peripheral vision on reported motion sickness during exposure to 2D/3D video clips for 1 min and for 1 min afterwards in human subjects. Stabilograms were recorded during exposure to video clips with or without visual pursuit of a 3D object and compared, and subjects were administered the simulator sickness questionnaire after stabilometry. Results There were no significant main effects of solidity of the visual stimulous (2D/3D) and the vision method (visual pursuit/peripheral viewing) in accordance with the two-way analysis of variance of the sway values, although the sway values during the 2D/3D video clips were higher than in control subjects. A consistent trend in the main effect of stability was observed. Further, the sway values changed remarkably after the 3D video clip was viewed peripherally and produced a persistent instability in equilibrium function. The questionnaire findings also significantly changed after the subjects viewed the video clips peripherally. Conclusions Subjective exacerbation and deterioration of equilibrium function were observed after peripheral viewing of 3D video clips. This persistent influence may result when subjects view a poorly depicted background element peripherally, which generates depth perception that contradicts daily experience.
