Faculty Bibliography

Background: Evaluation of adults with a symptom of acquired double vision is a challenging diagnostic problem. This retrospective report reviews a series of adult patients who presented with a symptom of 'double vision' but did not have diplopia related to a recently acquired or decompensated strabismus. The symptom of double vision was related mainly to blurred vision and often was not true binocular diplopia. Methods: This is a retrospective study of medical records. Results: 261 patients, age 40 years or older referred for a recent onset symptom of double vision were reviewed. Sixty-seven patients were included in the study. These patients presented with no findings that indicate a recent onset of incomitance or breakdown of a long-standing strabismus. The patients were divided into five groups with common etiologies and their findings were analysized. Group 1 (17 patients) had symptoms of double vision due to monocular blur without diplopia. Group 2 (21 patients) had symptoms of double vision related to monocular blur that caused a dissociation of a small phoria. Group 3 (10 patients) had symptoms of double vision related to superimposition of images due to a distorted image. Group 4 (13 patients) had symptoms of double vision related to convergence insufficiency. Group 5 (6 patients) had symptoms of double vision related to an induced tropia secondary to anisometropia correction. Options for treatment include improving vision and having the patient understand the nature of the problem. Conclusion: 'Double vision' does not mean the same thing to the patient and the examiner. The examiner must distinguish true diplopia from other symptoms and be able to demonstrate this to the patient. Treatment is directed to the specific type of problem, but improvement of vision resolves the large majority of these complaints. Examination and treatment techniques are discussed

Introduction and Purpose: To detect if dynamic visual acuity can be useful in the evaluation of a patient with vague asthenopic complaints including dizziness. Method: A review of the vestibular system and the vestibular ocular reflex as it relates to dynamic visual acuity. Results: Ten patients with asthenopic symptoms and convergence insufficiency were tested with dynamic visual acuity. None were found to have a positive test despite a complaint of dizziness, indicating the lack of vestibular involvement. Conclusion: Testing for dynamic visual acuity may be useful in the examination of patients with vague complaints of dizziness. Patients who presents with vague asthenopic complaints often include dizziness. Dynamic visual acuity may be helpful in diagnosing vestibular problems so appropriate referral can be made

Assessment of refractive errors is an integral part of the treatment of ophthalmic problems. This is especially important in pediatric patients for early diagnosis of strabismus and amblyopia. In anisometropic amblyopia, careful monitoring of the refractive error is necessary. The following case history describes a patient who developed myopic axial anisometropia at age one. It suggests that the development of myopic axial anisometropia may be different than our present understanding. We reviewed the literature and found no description of the onset of myopic axial anisometropia

The accommodative convergence/accommodation (AC/A) ratio is thought to be fixed throughout life. We present 11 patients who, in adulthood, show a situational increase in their AC/A ratio. Since all patients had a history of accommodative esotropia with and without a nonaccommodative component, we feel the situational increase in the AC/A ratio is in response to the additional effort needed to correct the patients' facultative hyperopia. These patients demonstrate the importance that all adults with acute onset of commitant esotropia and a history of accommodative esotropia should wear full correction before a prism is incorporated into their glasses or surgical intervention is considered