The National Eye Institute has completed a study last year (October 2008) on the treatment of convergence insufficiency and believes it has found a more effective eatment method.
Convergence Insufficiency occurs when the eyes have trouble staying turned in and staying aligned for near tasks such as reading,computers games, and near crafts. This condition is hard to detect since it may show no signs or symptoms for distance viewing, and my be present only when the child reaches a certain level of fatigue.
The Convergence Insufficiency Treatment Trial (CITT), found that in patients receiving visions therapy with a 1 hour office visit by a trained therapist plus at-home treatment reported 75% fewer and less severe symptoms related to reading and other near work. Symptoms of CI include headaches,poor reading grades in an otherwise intelligent child, eyestrain and headaches, an aversion to reading, loss of concentration and place while reading, and intermittent blurring of vision. Sometimes double vision is reported but usually children will supress the vision from one eye or place their hand over it and turn thier head to avoid double vision.
Now there is a 12 month follow-up study to test if the improvements are still being maintained after 1 year.
Convergence Insufficiency Vision Therapy has been structured around this model in our office for a number of years. We have found it to be the most beneficial and cost effective method available. This is important since vision insurance plans frequently will not cover this care, even though the National Eye Institute has substantiated its effectiveness.