Sports/Concussion Therapy in Calgary
A concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury that changes the way your brain functions. With an estimated 4-5 million occurring annually, it is the most common type of traumatic brain injury, many as a result of blunt trauma (such as a blow to the head) during contact sports. Soccer, lacrosse, football, and hockey are where the most injuries occur. Concussions can also be the result of violent shaking of the head or upper body. Adults commonly suffer from concussions as the result of a motor vehicle accident or fall. Eyesight can be affected when a concussion occurs. At Premier Eye Care in Calgary, AB, we provide concussion therapy and management to help reduce the number of symptoms presented and return you to full health.
Symptoms
- Headache or vision problems
- Feeling in a fog
- Visual perceptual challenges
Symptoms can also be emotional or affect sleep. Because they can be so varied (physical, cognitive, or emotional), medical evaluation is very important following a concussion.
Visual effects of a concussion
Because so many connections within the brain are involved with some aspect of vision (visual input, perception, or integration), it is not surprising that vision problems are common following a brain injury. Concussions can affect the visual system in the following ways:
- Accommodative insufficiency: the eye loses some ability to focus, resulting in blurry near vision or a pulsing in and out of clarity while doing near activities like reading
- Blurry vision: can occur at a distance, near, or both
- Convergence insufficiency: being unable to use the eyes comfortably at near can cause headaches, eyestrain, fatigue, or even double vision
- Double vision
- Light sensitivity
- Ocular-motor dysfunction: deficiencies in eye movement abilities
- Reduced cognitive abilities with visual tasks
- Reduced visual procession speed or reaction time
The visual component to concussion management
The first step to receiving therapy is assessing the condition. This will consist of the Neuro-Optometric Assessment that will help determine whether glasses, contact lenses, vision therapy, or some combination of these treatments will be best for your visual conditions. Some of the most common visual effects of mild traumatic brain injury all respond to vision therapy.
At Premier Eye Care, we work to help the athletes of Calgary, AB to maintain eye health.