Diagnosis and Treatment of Post-Concussive Vision Syndrome  

More than 300,000 sports-related concussions occur each year, according to research.  Many more concussions result from motor vehicle accidents, falls, and other non-sports related incidents.  In addition to causing cognitive difficulties, concussions may result in a cluster of problems called post-concussive vision syndrome.  If you have recently experienced a concussion, please call the office to assess problems of dizziness, light sensitivity, double vision, problems with blurred vision, and eye strain.
 


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Most Common Symptoms of Post-Concussive Vision Syndrome Include

A concussion is simply an injury to the brain following some type of blow to the head.  In serious cases, this may cause shearing of nerves in the brain or traumatic damage to certain brain areas.  If parts of the visual system are impacted, some of the following symptoms may result:

  • Double vision. Seeing two versions of the same object is a sign of double vision, which may result from damage to the eyes, eye muscles, or portions of the brain.
  • Blurred vision.
  • Light sensitivity or sensitivity to glare.
  • Difficulty reading, including words “swimming” on the page
  • Problems attending to visual information
  • Eye strain, even following relatively minor visual tasks
  • Headaches after reading or performing other visual tasks
  • Problems focusing on objects (also called accommodative dysfunction)
  • Difficulty following moving objects
  • Impairment in quickly shifting gaze from one point to another
  • Loss of a portion of the visual field.

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Treatment of Post-Concussive Vision Syndrome

Dr. Gordon will recommend an individualized treatment program to address your symptoms of post-concussive vision syndrome.  This may include corrective lenses to address problems with visual acuity or focusing, as well as prism lenses to alleviate eyestrain and/or double vision.

Additionally, Dr. Gordon may recommend optometric vision therapy.  Vision therapy is not simply designed to exercise your eye muscles; rather, it involves a series of special vision experiences.  These therapies can retrain your eyes to respond differently to visual stimuli.  For example, you may practice focusing, viewing objects through special prisms or lenses, using special techniques to track an object with your eyes, or responding to visual stimuli with a particular movement to improve eye-body coordination.

In most cases, vision therapy involves visiting the office up to an hour, once each week. The activities will be reinforced with practice at home.  This 'homework' gives your eyes and vision system additional practice, retraining your eyes and brain to function as they did before your concussion.

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Friday
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