Challenging Optical Pathway Delay Theory

O'Connor et al. report the case of a 25-year-old healthy, blind male, MT, who experiences normal patterns of deja vu.

The optical pathway delay theory of deja vu formation assumes that neuronal input from the optical pathways is necessary for the formation of the experience. Surprisingly, although the sensation of deja vu is known to be experienced by blind individuals, they believe this to be the first reported application of this knowledge to the understanding of the phenomenon.

Visual input is not present in MT, yet the experiences he describes are consistent with reports in the literature of deja vu occurrence in sighted people.

The fact that blind people can experience deja vu challenges the optical pathway delay theory, and alternative causes are briefly discussed.