Vision is so important; vision is integrated throughout the whole brain. Humans are very much visual-spatial beings and when the visual spatial skills, that are relied on, become compromised from a concussion, difficulties may arise. Those difficulties could relate to adverse cognitive, memory, physical, emotional as well as visual symptoms.
A large percentage of people recover fully from an mTBI (mild traumatic brain injury), however there is a small percentage of people that do not make a full recovery. A concussion is often associated with receiving a hard blow to the head and losing consciousness or blacking out. Losing consciousness is not a prerequisite to being diagnosed with a concussion. A concussion or mTBI can occur without loss of consciousness.
Up to 70% of the neural fibers in the brain have to do with some aspect of vision. Because of this fact, there are many potential visual problems that can arise from a concussion such as:Â double vision, blurry vision, eye strain, visual related headaches, feeling overwhelmed in a crowded environment, light sensitivity and reduced eye-hand reaction time.
If a concussion or mTBI is suspected, please don’t hesitate to seek an evaluation from a developmental optometrist who is trained to assess and treat vision related concussion concerns. It is important to determine if vision is leading or impeding.
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