Vision Therapy

Vision therapy is a customized and personalized treatment plan created by our residency-trained optometrist, Dr. Lily Chen, to improve and strengthen visual skills. Vision therapy is beyond simple eye exercises — it enhances brain-eye communication, improves the visual system to interpret visual input, and the enhanced operation of the visual system. The goal of vision therapy is to strengthen visual skills — eye-tracking, focusing, eye convergence, eye-hand coordination, visual processing speed, visual comfort, and more. Overall, Vision Therapy changes how a patient processes and interprets visual information. It makes it easier to adapt to changing visual demands.

What is Visual Efficiency Exam (VEE)

Visual efficiency exam assess for eye focusing, eye tracking, eye movement, eye teaming/coordination and depth perception abilities. Common symptoms include blurry vision, double vision, fluctuating vision, skipping lines when reading, headaches, and eyestrain. While seeing 20/20 is very important in maintaining good vision, good vision is not limited to only seeing 20/20 clearly. While seeing 20/20 is very important in maintaining good vision, good vision is not limited to only seeing 20/20 clearly. Visual efficiency skills are visual habits that allow one to maintain single, clear and comfortable vision at all distances.

Visual skills include but are not limited to eye teaming and focusing abilities, visual tracking skills, necessary for reading and writing, as well as eye-hand coordination. Fine and gross motor coordination also contributes to the development of visual skills. Visual efficiency skills are visual habits that allow one to maintain single, clear and comfortable vision at all distances. Usually they develop in childhood. They can also be trained with Vision Therapy even in adults.

visual skills.

What is Visual Perceptual Exam (VEE)

VPEs assess for how brain interprets what the eye sees including a myriad of visual skills that are learning related such as visual discrimination, visual memory, and visual spatial relationships. Common symptoms include poor coordination, trouble with letter and number reversals, and poor handwriting. VPEs assess for how brain interprets what the eye sees including a myriad of visual skills that are learning related such as visual discrimination, visual memory, and visual spatial relationships. Common symptoms include poor coordination, trouble with letter and number reversals, and poor handwriting.

What is Strabismus Evaluation?

Strabismus (eye turn) and Amblyopia (lazy eye) are disorders of binocular vision, resulting in reduced depth perception. This evaluation assesses the size, frequency and direction of your eye-turn if present as well as the flexibility and range of inward (convergence) and outward (divergence) eye-teaming movements. The results from these testing will let us know what the best treatment options are for you, whether it is prescription glasses or contact lenses, prism lenses, vision therapy and/or eye-muscle surgery.

While seeing 20/20 is very important in maintaining good vision, good vision is not limited to only seeing 20/20 clearly. There are other factors that may contribute to a patient's visual acuity which are called visual efficiency skills. Visual efficiency skills are visual habits that allow one to maintain single, clear and comfortable vision at all distances. These skills usually develop during childhood, but if there are environmental or developmental impediments, oftentimes, a child may not see clearly despite having an updated prescription. If this is the case, vision therapy may be a treatment option for patients to allow gradual improvements in their visual skills. Usually vision therapy is most effective in children, but they can also be used to help adults as well. Therefore, it is important to schedule a consultation with an optometrist who specializes in Vision Therapy to reinforce your child’s visual skills.

What is a Neuro-optometric Evaluation?

Neuro-optometric evaluations examine how well the eyes and brain work together and the possibility of rehabilitation through vision therapy and specialized lenses. People with traumatic brain injury, concussions, stroke, and cerebral palsy often suffer from visual symptoms such as double vision, headaches, eyestrain, light sensitivity, poor balance, and poor spatial awareness. These symptoms can be mitigated with vision rehabilitation through vision therapy and/or specialized lenses.

Why is Vision Therapy important?

80% of learning occurs through vision

Learning is most efficient when we have an efficiently functioning visual system-good eye teaming, a flexible and efficient focusing system, and the ability to effortlessly track our eyes on subjects of interest. Add to these skills the ability to give meaning to everything we see –visual processing. Being able to see clearly doesn’t mean we also understand what we see.

Not all optometrists are the same and certainly not everyone tests for these necessary skills. Behavioral or developmental optometrists specialize in looking at how our brain and eyes work together. Binocular vision exams, Visual Efficiency Exams, and Visual Perceptual Evaluations are tools I use to properly diagnose my patients and determine the most appropriate treatment for each individual because no two cases are identical

Who can benefit from Vision Therapy?

Research has demonstrated vision therapy as an effective treatment option for:

+ Ocular motility dysfunctions (eye movement disorders)
+ Non-strabismic binocular disorders (inefficient eye teaming)
+ Strabismus (misalignment of the eyes)
+ Amblyopia (poorly developed vision)
+ Accommodative disorders (focusing problems)
+ Visual information processing disorders, including visual-motor integration and integration with other sensory + modalities
+ Vision Issues resulting from a Traumatic Brain Injury or Concussion

Frequently asked questions

1. How to know if your child needs a binocular vision exam?

Your child may need a binocular vision exam with the doctor if they have any of the following symptoms:
Squint or close their eye
Complains of blurry, shadowed, or double vision
Eyestrain or headaches with near work
Bumps into things frequently
Poor depth perception
Skips lines or words when reading

2. What do you do in vision therapy session?

Each session is about 45 min, you/your child will be working with our excellent team of vision therapists to complete a variety of exercises designed to strengthen your vision. We spend hours building each patient’s treatment plan and pre-planning the activities that we do each week. Many of our exercises are designed as “games” that keep the sessions engaging. If your eyes are tired afterwards that means the therapy is working, just like going to the gym we are working your eyes muscles to make them stronger. Vision therapy purpose is to develop patients visual skills to help maintain comfortable, clear and single vision. It also improves visual efficiency and ease. Overall, Vision Therapy changes how a patient processes and interprets visual information. It makes it easier to adapt to changing visual demands.

3 How long would it take for results?

Results vary according to each patient’s condition as well as compliance and motivation during vision therapy. Typically patients graduate around the estimated number of treatment sessions and last anywhere from 6-12 months. The acceleration of your (or your child’s) progress is directly proportional to the amount of effort you put forth to practice and perfect the skills taught weekly. It is unrealistic to expect rapid gain by only attending the weekly in-office session without practicing the skills at home.

4.Would adults benefit from Vision Therapy?

Adults would benefit from vision therapy since recent research shows that neuroplasticity lasts through adulthood and the brain can also be taught to make new neuronal connections.