Vision restoration

Hi Allan,

You are absolutely right about neuroplasticity and the brains potential to form new connections. This is still a relatively new area of study and understanding around the potential of neuroplasticity continues to develop and grow. At this stage there is not a great deal of information or evidence around interventions aimed at improving visual dysfunction. The Stroke Foundation are in the process of updating our clinical guidelines with the new edition due for release in July 2017. This will include a review of any recent research findings and any updated treatment recommendations, so remember to check our website for the new publication.

We would recommend speaking with an ophthalmologist or orthoptist who can assess your vision and provide appropriate therapy and management recommendations.

You can search for an OT who specialises in vision impairment here. You can access up to 5 Medicare rebated allied health sessions by obtaining a chronic disease management treatment plan through your GP.

You may also like to take a look at our Vision loss after stroke fact sheet or contact Vision Australia or Guide Dogs Australia to see what supports and services they may have available.

It is great to see you being proactive in your recovery Alan. I hope other member of the community will share their knowledge and experiences.

Please don't hesitate to contact us at StrokeLine (1800 787 653) if you would like to discuss things further.

Best wishes,

Alana - StrokeLine

Hi Alana

I have been through the course with Guide Dogs Australia - they were very helpful but have now signed off having done as much as they can for me.

One of your other links has taken me to the UK Stroke Association web site. There are a couple of interesting web-based tools mentioned there - Read-Right and Eye-Search. Both claim to be of value for people with Hemianopia - but do not reference quadrantanopia which I have. Do you think one or both of these tools may be of value for my condition?

Thanks you and regards          Allan B

Have a look at vision restitution therapy it may be of benefit but unlikely to restore full sight

Hi Allan,

I'm not overly familiar with Eye-Search or Read-Right, however they are both free and funded by the Stroke Association UK so can't hurt to trial. I imagine it would still be applicable to quadrantanopia. It states it won't improve your visual fields (field or degrees of vision) but may improve your function (speed and ease of seeing/locating items in your field). Something you could discuss further with your eye specialists or rehab team.

"Eye-Search will not improve your visual field, but it should improve your visual function by inducing changes in how you move your eyes to sample the world around you. This is called a compensatory strategy. A paper detailing the strategy behind Eye-Search has been published in the scientific journal Cortex. The article can be viewed by visiting the following link: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010945212001244

Here is another article you might be interested in http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acn3.154/full

As Phillip has mentioned you could look into vision restoration therapy, however at the time our last guidelines were written there was C grade evidence, meaning while there is some support it should be used with caution. It will be interesting to see if the evidence has changed when the new guidelines come out. 

If you wish to discuss further, don't hesitate to contact us on StrokeLine on 1800 787 653.

Best wishes,

Simone (Occupational Therapist)