Calgary Vision Therapy
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    • Learning Difficulty
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    • Visual Perception Delays
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    • Dr Brent Neufeld
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    • Pre-examination Forms
    • Is a Referral Required?
    • Referral from School
    • Referral from Optometrist
    • Psychologist Referral
    • Allied Professional refer
  • Info For Parents
  • Vison Therapy References
Calgary Vision Therapy
  • Home
  • What Is Vision Therapy
  • Vision & Learning
  • What We Treat
    • Learning Difficulty
    • ADD/ADHD
    • Concussion & Brain Injury
    • Convergence Insufficiency
    • Eye Tracking Dysfunction
    • Visual Perception Delays
    • Is Dyslexia treatable?
    • Lazy Eye
    • Sports Vision Training
  • Neuro-Optometry Exam
  • About Us
    • Vision & Learning Center
    • Dr Brent Neufeld
    • Hours and Location
  • Referrals & Forms
    • Pre-examination Forms
    • Is a Referral Required?
    • Referral from School
    • Referral from Optometrist
    • Psychologist Referral
    • Allied Professional refer
  • Info For Parents
  • Vison Therapy References

Neuro-optometry eye exam

A Neuro-optometry examination is an in-depth look at how the eyes and the brain work together.  It is an opportunity to test the important areas of how your vision functions, to see if they are holding you back in your recovery or holding you back in your performance.  More in depth testing that is not generally able to be performed in a basic eye health and visual evaluations can be beneficial for children who are having troubles in the reading / learning process and for individuals who have unanswered visual problems that are not related to existing eye disease.  


If your current eye care practitioner is spending only 15 minutes with you and is not addressing your concerns, or you are being told that "you have 20/20 vision and your eyes are healthy", ask for a referral for more in depth testing with Dr Neufeld at Calgary Vision Therapy.  (However, please note that a referral is not required.  You can contact Calgary Vision Therapy directly to schedule an evaluation).


There are several key areas that need to be assessed:

Binocular Vision Function (eye teaming)

Binocular Vision Function (eye teaming)

Binocular Vision Function (eye teaming)

Convergence (eyes moving inwards) and divergence (eyes moving outwards) abilities need to be assessed. Problems with convergence or divergence are often diagnosed as convergence insufficiency, convergence excess. Divergence insufficiency, divergence excess, vergence dysfunction, or binocular vision dysfunction.  Double vision or movement 

Convergence (eyes moving inwards) and divergence (eyes moving outwards) abilities need to be assessed. Problems with convergence or divergence are often diagnosed as convergence insufficiency, convergence excess. Divergence insufficiency, divergence excess, vergence dysfunction, or binocular vision dysfunction.  Double vision or movement of print can occur with such dysfunctions especially if the binocular function is unstable.  Binocular vision dysfunctions can cause more difficulties in learning/reading.  They are also common individuals who have suffered a concussion.

Accommodative Disorders (focusing)

Binocular Vision Function (eye teaming)

Binocular Vision Function (eye teaming)

 Accommodation ability is measured by using lenses to determine the  ability of the brain to control how and where the eyes are focusing.  Problems with accommodation are often diagnosed as accommodative infacility or accommodative dysfunction.  Blurring of vision when reading or troubles transitioning your focus from near to far are common symptoms.

Oculomotor Dysfunctions (eye tracking)

Binocular Vision Function (eye teaming)

Oculomotor Dysfunctions (eye tracking)

Too often, during a basic eye exam,  an individual follows a target to see if there are any restrictions in gaze and when this is normal, it is implied that the eye tracking is normal.  These two things are not the same.


Saccadic (eye movement) abilities have been shown to be affected by concussions, and problems with oculomotor function h

Too often, during a basic eye exam,  an individual follows a target to see if there are any restrictions in gaze and when this is normal, it is implied that the eye tracking is normal.  These two things are not the same.


Saccadic (eye movement) abilities have been shown to be affected by concussions, and problems with oculomotor function has been shown to be an indicator of brain injury. These should be tested both with targets in real space, and often with computerized eye tracking. Problems with saccades are often diagnosed as oculomotor dysfunction or saccadic dysfunction. 

Peripheral Integration

Depth Perception and Spatial Processing

Oculomotor Dysfunctions (eye tracking)

 Our central visual system is what our brains use for seeing clearly and  identifying what we are looking at. Our peripheral visual system is what our brains use for processing movement, motion, guiding eye tracking, balance, coordination and more. This can be seen very quickly if you cover both your eyes entirely except for a very small 

 Our central visual system is what our brains use for seeing clearly and  identifying what we are looking at. Our peripheral visual system is what our brains use for processing movement, motion, guiding eye tracking, balance, coordination and more. This can be seen very quickly if you cover both your eyes entirely except for a very small pinhole of vision, and then try to walk around your house. Peripheral integration is  different than just visual field testing, which only tests if you can see it, not whether it’s being processed accurately. Problems in this area can often be diagnosed as  visual-vestibular mismatch or poor central-peripheral integration 

Depth Perception and Spatial Processing

Depth Perception and Spatial Processing

Depth Perception and Spatial Processing

Depth perception can be measured in a variety of ways. One of the ways this is measured is by using polarized 3D glasses and 3D targets. This does not always rule out problems with depth perception because it only looks at one aspect. Depth and spatial perception can also be tested by using various tests that are in real-space.  Difficult

Depth perception can be measured in a variety of ways. One of the ways this is measured is by using polarized 3D glasses and 3D targets. This does not always rule out problems with depth perception because it only looks at one aspect. Depth and spatial perception can also be tested by using various tests that are in real-space.  Difficulty with judging space or estimating distances can occur with individuals that can pass the 3D glasses test.

Visual Perception

Depth Perception and Spatial Processing

Depth Perception and Spatial Processing

Visual perception is often referred to as the ability to understand and process what is seen through your eyes/visual system.  You can have 20/20 eyesight but still have visual processing difficulties.  Standardized testing in areas of visual discrimination, visual figure ground, visual closure, visual memory and visual sequential memory 

Visual perception is often referred to as the ability to understand and process what is seen through your eyes/visual system.  You can have 20/20 eyesight but still have visual processing difficulties.  Standardized testing in areas of visual discrimination, visual figure ground, visual closure, visual memory and visual sequential memory can be performed to help identify potential areas of weakness.

Reading and learning

When a child is struggling with reading and learning one of the first  suggestions is often to have the eyes checked. Too often the eye exam  with the optometrist or pediatric ophthalmologist concentrates only on  seeing clearly and the physical health of the eye. This means that  problems with eye tracking, how the eyes work together, and how the  brain processes the vision are overlooked. 

It is important to assess these areas as they can cause the same symptoms as dyslexia, attention  deficit disorder (ADD/ADHD), developmental coordination disorder, dysgraphia, and other learning disabilities.  

common reading and learning problems caused by vision

Sustaining attention

If eye movement is really inefficient, it takes a lot more effort to try  to sustain attention. Think of your child skating with dull skates. You couldn’t expect them to skate for as long as when using properly sharpened skates.  With the dull skates, your child would get more bumps and bruises from the falls. Studies have shown that vergence (eye teaming problems) can cause 7 of the 9 symptoms of attention deficit disorder. 

Recognizing letters or words

If your child’s eyes do not track accurately through the text, they will not be able to take in what they are reading in the proper order. In addition, their brain will be focusing on the act of just trying to track their eyes, leaving less power for comprehending and understanding  the material. 


The most severe tracking issues can mean  that every time a child looks at a letter it looks fundamentally  different to them. It can also cause confusion between similarly shaped  letters. 

Reading fluency

When the eyes jump to unexpected places on the page, it can make it  difficult to read smoothly with the right intonation. Being able to read out loud fluently involves scanning ahead of the word you’re reading to  put it in context and determine the correct intonation. Try reading a  paragraph aloud while you block out all the words ahead of the one you  are saying, and you’ll quickly realize you lose fluency. 

Reading comprehension

If your child’s eyes do not track accurately through the text, they will not be able to take in what they are reading in the proper order. In addition, their brain will be focusing on the act of just trying to track their eyes, leaving less power for comprehending and understanding the material. 

Writing

Writing requires the brain to formulate what needs to be written, and  then coordinate the motor movements of the wrist, fingers, hand and arm to re-create what has been visualized. Vision problems can result in messy writing, slanted writing, unequal spacing, unequal sizing and more. 

Copying from the board

Efficient copying from the board requires that the learner can accurately move their eyes from board to page, as well as retain the snapshot of the word/words they want to copy from the board. If the eyes don’t work together properly, track accurately or focus properly it  cause make for slow and difficult copying. 

Spelling

Spelling is visual ‘memmory’ task. What did you just say there? It _____ wrong. You’re right, it doesn’t sound wrong, it looks wrong. Spelling really comes down to visual memory, and if a young learner.  

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