Check the idea Well Here Nystagmus - A Little Known Yet Surprisingly Common Eye Condition

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Nystagmus - A Little Known Yet Surprisingly Common Eye Condition

Nystagmus is actually a type of uncontrolled eye movement affecting approximately one in every 2,000 individuals, the idea is actually characterized by alternating smooth eye movement in one direction as well as saccadic (abrupt, short) movement inside additional direction. Movement is actually usually by side to side although, sometimes movement can be up as well as down or even circular. Nystagmus is actually not painful as well as does not lead to progressive loss of vision
Types of Nystagmus
There are more than 40 different types of nystagmus although they are usually classified into two basic categories:
1. Nystagmus present by early in life, is actually known as early onset nystagmus, or congenital nystagmus, the idea often accompanies vision loss acquired at birth or soon after as well as may be one of the first signs that will a child incorporates a loss of vision.
2. Nystagmus which develops later in life is actually called Acquired Nystagmus.
Causes of Nystagmus
1. Early onset nystagmus: Pediatric Nystagmus may be caused by a problem with the eyes or the visual pathways leading by the brain to the eyes. that will type of nystagmus is actually usually first observed between 6 weeks as well as 8 weeks of age as well as can be associated with albinism, optic nerve problems or retina problems. There is actually likely to be a genetic factor as well as in fact doctors have recently announced a breakthrough inside discovery of a gene associated with nystagmus which holds great promise for future treatments.
Many patients do not have any eye, brain or additional health problem as well as in these cases the condition is actually known as congenital idiopathic nystagmus (meaning that will the nystagmus starts early as well as the cause is actually unknown). Nystagmus associated with albinism has characteristics similar to idiopathic nystagmus although usually is actually absent until after age 2 months. Nystagmus can also be found in children with Down's syndrome.
2. Acquired nystagmus: Nystagmus can be acquired later in life due to neurological dysfunction such as a head injury, multiple sclerosis or brain tumors. Nystagmus can also be caused by lesions inside cerebellum, the area of the brainstem where the vestibular cranial nerve arises or further along the vestibular pathways.
Signs as well as Symptoms of Nystagmus
Nystagmus is actually associated with reduced vision, constant movement of the eyes which gets worse with tiredness or stress, fluctuations in visual acuity, sometimes with head nodding as well as often the head is actually carried at an angle as well as the eyes are kept to one side (that will slows the movement, providing a null point as well as allows for better vision). Patients with nystagmus frequently have additional vision problems such as astigmatism that will require prescription eyeglasses as well as strabismus. Impairment to binocular vision is actually common with early onset nystagmus as well as depth perception is actually indirectly impaired in many patients.
The presence of a pale optic disk, or a history of progressive visual loss, should suggest that will the nystagmus is actually acquired as well as possibly due to a neoplasm involving the visual system.
Risk Factors
The following factors increase your chance of developing nystagmus: a family member with nystagmus, albinism, eye disorders such as optic nerve degeneration, severe astigmatism, or near sightedness, diseases of the body such as Menieres disease, multiple sclerosis, stroke, head injuries, use of medications, such as lithium or anti seizure medications, alcohol or drug use as well as infection of the inner ear.
Treatment for Nystagmus
At present there is actually no cure for nystagmus however, for once there are an increased number of researchers working on the condition as well as genetic research in particular offers brand new wish.
Contact Lenses Contact lenses have been shown to aid some nystagmus patients probably because of the actual contact with the eye leading to better control of the horizontal nystagmus movement.

Prisms can be used to help the eyes converge thus reducing the nystagmus.
Simple tests like visual acuity can be misleading as the vision may decrease if the patient is actually under stress or has latent nystagmus which causes an increase in nystagmus in both eyes when one eye is actually covered.
Biofeedback which teaches the patient to control eye movements to some extent by the use of visual as well as audio effects has been reported to be beneficial by some people.
Surgery, in particular tetonomy (cutting the eye muscles as well as reattaching them) has been quite successfully used inside United States. Botox, Baclofen as well as recently Mamentine as well as Gabapentin are drugs which are being tried out. There have been reports of Great success with auricular acupuncture.
Living with Nystagmus
Nystagmus can affect nearly every aspect of life, including how a patient relates to additional people, educational as well as work opportunities as well as self image.
Most people who have had nystagmus all their lives are not effected by the constantly moving image as their brain has adapted to the movement of the eyes, although those with acquired nystagmus can not adjust as well as well as may suffer by dizziness as well as vertigo.
Depth perception is actually usually reduced considerably, that will can cause problems with balance as well as a perceived clumsiness.
Except for certain parts of the USA where optical devices are accepted, people with nystagmus can not get a driving licence creating sure that will they have to rely on public transport which can be a problem in itself in unfamiliar places.
Socially, because the idea is actually difficult for someone with nystagmus to maintain eye contact, the idea can be a problem maintaining self confidence. However there are many people with the condition who live an extremely successful as well as fruitful existence, adapting easily to their condition as well as building perfectly normal lives.
For children with nystagmus the idea is actually important that will their teachers as well as classmates are advised as to how the condition affects them so as to prevent problems caused by misunderstandings. For example, children with nystagmus may read slowly because of the extra time needed to scan printed material. that will should not be taken as a sign of poor reading ability. Students or school children with nystagmus may need extra time to study as well as when sitting exams. Many students with nystagmus use computers, as they can position screens to suit their own needs as well as adjust brightness, character size, as well as so on.