Previous literature has found deficits in visual processing abilities in adults with alcohol dependence13,17,18 and cannabis users19, but the altered brain regions and neural dynamics underlying these deficits remain far less understood. In regards to oscillatory activity, visual-spatial processing is known to be associated with both bottom up and top down visual processing networks20, including multispectral responses across the occipital cortices21–24. For example, visual cortical oscillations in the theta band have been associated with bottom up processing and the initial basic sensory coding and organization of external stimuli24–27, while gamma band activity has been linked to the processing and integration of information across different brain regions, as well as the registration of stimulus features28,29. Meanwhile, alpha activity has been linked to top down visual processing, including filtering and inhibiting incoming visual input30–33. Alpha activity during visual processing has been specifically implicated in heavy alcohol use34, although the role of use disorder was not studied. Given the critical role of oscillations in visual processing and cognition, understanding alterations in these neural population responses will contribute key data on the origin of cognitive and psychological changes in the context of substance use disorders.
