Double Vision Mystery

[historygirl]

About 4 years ago, I developed double vision. I had been experiencing a great deal of stress, including a really stressful divorce and surviving Ground Zero on 9/11. I have had every conceivable test for MS which were negative but I am being treated with Copaxone which has not resolved the issue. It has not gotten worse. I do eye exercises under the guidance of a behavioral optometrist which does help quite a bit. I have always had some minor eye problems - astigmatism in both eyes, slight myopia and as I got older I need reading glasses - and I wonder if I haven't always had some weakness in my eye muscles that are now simply weaker due to computer use or aging.
Any ideas about my double vision?

[OldFrank]

I am 85 years old, and I have double vision mostly in one eye after reading for 20 to 30 minutes. It often occurs when I do some reading at the library. When I start home, all of the traffic lights have an offset image of the main image. The problem clears up after about 30 minutes, and my vision is quite good, roughly 20/20. My opthmologist retired recently, and when I visited a new one, he said the problem was caused by dry eyes. Since I add antifical tears before I start reading and sometimes thereafter, I think that's not the problem.

Frank

[JodieJ]

My double vision developed secondary to monovision contact lens wear.  (Yes, our problems are similar--both are described in the same section of Dr. Kushner's article.)  I was given terrible advice by several eye care professionals, who urged me to continue with monovision.  By the time I saw a strabismus specialist, my intermittent double vision at distance could not be eliminated by stopping monovision.  The strab surgeon gave me a computerized vision therapy program ("Computerized Home Vergence Exercises") to try out before I had surgery.  I had to work very hard to pass the tasks, but I did make some progress during the few weeks before my scheduled surgery.  My surgery involved one muscle of one eye, and it was completely painless.  My double vision was gone immediately after surgery--as if by magic.  

[Dlr60]

Jodie,  would you please share more on your experience with double vision as you hit middle age.   And the  outpatient procedure that helped with it.  Plus,  could you elaborate more on the computer exercises you follow?  Thanks so much .  I think we are similar in our vision troubles.  

[JodieJ]

Yes, do see a strabismus specialist (sometimes called a pediatric ophthalmologist, but they see adults, too.)  I also developed double vision as a middle aged adult.  It's possible for a minor eye muscle imbalance (called a "phoria") to breakdown in middle age for various reasons.  Most of my double vision could be eliminated with prisms, but I still wasn't satisfied.  I also made some progress with a computerized vision therapy program.  But a totally painless outpatient procedure completely eliminated my double vision.  After surgery, the computer exercises which I had struggled with for hours suddenly became easy.    

[Ray T Oyakawa, MD]

See a strabismus specialist.

Dr. O.