Health

Most people relate to the subject of eye care within their own frames of reference. A younger person may identify with blurred vision and its treatment in the form of glasses. Middle aged folks tend to become aware of their eyes when they can no longer read fine print at arm’s length. The older person might have blurred vision secondary to a disease process such as glaucoma, macular degeneration or cataracts. Whatever the age or cause, most of these people seek out professional eye care and make informed decisions as to the best treatments for their problems.

Often times, though, people who have experienced stroke and brain injury do not seek out advice for their visual problems. They may have double vision, a loss of peripheral vision, reading problems or a host of other visual problems that they consider untreatable or simply problems they need to cope with. Many people with the visual complications of stroke and head injury find themselves in a void. They may or may not know that something is wrong but often find it difficult to obtain diagnosis and or treatment for these debilitating visual problems. Fortunately, rehabilitative medicine is embracing the notion that these people have diagnosable and treatable visual problems. This article should be used as a resource for visual problems and associated treatments available to stroke and head injury patient.

Due to our ever expanding population, growing numbers of people find themselves with a debilitating visual problem associated with a brain injury, stroke, multiple sclerosis or a host of other neurological problems. Neuro-optometrists specialize in treating the visual problems associated with these conditions. Neuro-optometric rehabilitation professionals works closely with the rest of the rehabilitation team.  The purpose of this specialized group of professionals is to guide the visual rehabilitation of a person with an injury to the brain through lenses, prisms and vision therapy.

Optometrists in the United States all undergo extensive education programs before they obtain their Doctor of Optometry degree (O.D.). Specifically, most programs require an undergraduate degree and have rigorous entrance requirements to optometry school. The optometric curriculum is a four-year process where academic standards are high and a series of board qualifying exams are administered. Upon successful completion, many optometrists choose to specialize in visual rehabilitation. These optometrists can obtain a fellowship from the College of Optometrists in Vision Development (F.C.O.V.D.). They may also become members in the Neuro Optometric Rehabilitation Association (NORA), where another testing and certification process is available.

Many of these optometrists have been treating stroke and head injury patients in hospitals and clinics for years. This group of professionals tends to view the visual system in a different light as compared to their traditional counterparts. Rather than trying to prescribe a typical pair of glasses, medicine or surgery, these optometrists turn to prisms and therapy to improve a patient’s visual function. In addition, they recognize a phenomenon referred to as neural plasticity. This process is a kind of “rewiring” of the brain. It was once thought that when a person suffered brain trauma, the damage was irreversible. The common thought today in neuron-optometry is that with vision training, in some cases a person can regain some if not all visual function.

The visual complications secondary to brain injury continue to rise with alarming speed due to an increased number of motor vehicles and associated accidents. As baby boomers age, this graying population adds to the number of stroke cases. Recent war strategies include devices that result in huge numbers of our troops suffering from visually related head injuries. The number of trauma victims in the next 10 years will be staggering. It will be necessary for medicine and insurance companies to recognize this ever increasing population’s symptoms and needs. The good news for the patient is the neuron-optometric profession is poised and ready to diagnose and treat this patient population.

Most people with visual complications of stroke and head injuries will find some relief in the knowledge that there is hope for a problem that many medical professionals dismiss as unfounded and untreatable. Medicine can be slow to accept and embrace ideas and treatments that are full of logical treatment plans but are difficult to prove in a study. Fortunately, many of these treatments are gaining acceptance and proving their worth through patient success stories and clinical case studies. Some treatments are more difficult to substantiate than others, and it is wise for the patient to approach these treatments with apprehension. This is not unlike any medical treatment. When in doubt never hesitate to question the health care provider or obtain a second opinion.