Double vision/headaches

My father  - out of the blue, has begun to experience severe headaches/pain non-stop 24/7 coupled with double vision.  So far - CAT scans/MRI and bone scans have turned up nothing?  Where do we go from here?  What could be causing this?  He has some mild diabetes - but the doctors don't think this is the cause - and he has also developed within the past year severe back pain due to degenerative disk disease.  Any thoughts or suggestions you can offer would be greatly appreciated.  Percaset does not help with the head pain - and we are at a loss - it is difficult to see your loved ones suffer without relief or any answers.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

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[arcurlyq]

I am 29 years old and have experiencing worsening double vision over the past 10 years.  I had some double vision as a kid/teen, but my glasses always seemed to solve the problem.  Then, it proceeded to get worse through college and grad school (worse each year).

In the past few months, it has gotten to the point where I'm almost in tears when I try to read (one of my favorite activites) or do anything that involves near vision.  I am nearsighted and have an astigmatism.  I wear glasses and my distance vision is great with them on (in fact, it's never been better).  However, all the close-up work I do (which is a lot) is becoming harder and harder.  When I try to read, I almost constantly see double, the lines float around on the page, and my focusing goes "in and out."  If I concentrate, I can "make" things look clear, but the minute I stop concentrating so hard, everything goes out of focus.  Of course, all this focusing makes my head hurt.  If I close one eye, the double vision goes away, but it gets harder to see the words.  I find that I keep one eye (always my left) closed a lot when doing close up work.  My eyes water sometimes too, and I have trouble concentrating on what I'm reading because I'm so busy focusing.  

Here's the strange part - when I wear reading glasses (+2.00, the kind you get at the drug store), my problem completely goes away!  No headaches, no tearing, nothing.  The double vision stops and I keep my head straight.  Is this supposed to work this way?  I always thought reading glasses were for visual acquity problems, but they clearly help me.  Am I just nuts?

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

Your problem is strongly suggestive of "over-minused" glasses. That is they are too strong. To test for this would need to see an ophthalmologist and discuss your problem. You can tell them about this forum. You need a "post-cycloplegic refraction" that will determine if the glasses are too strong. That is also why in young adults the glasses test is more accurate if done AFTER dilation. Over minus glasses make your eye work too hard at near.

JCH III MD