Introducing Vivid Vision

Binocular vision disorders are conditions which affect how the eyes work together. They can often be associated with symptoms such as:

• Eye strain
• Headaches after short periods of near work
• Blurred or double vision
• Words moving on the page
• Closing or covering an eye when reading
• Difficulty remembering what is read
• Poor eye-hand coordination

Some vision problems, such as short-sightedness, long-sightedness, and astigmatism can be corrected with spectacles or contact lenses. However, many binocular vision disorders require vision training exercises.

New to the world of vision training comes Vivid Vision, a virtual reality (VR) vision training program. Our Adelaide practice is the first practice in South Australia to offer Vivid Vision to help improve your binocular vision skills. Since the beginning of the 2010s, the next generation of VR headsets have been released and this has led to the development of vision training exercises within virtual reality. Vivid Vision incorporates vision exercises within virtual reality to help your eyes work together and improve your depth perception (or 3D vision).^{1, 2}

Our optometrists can develop a personally tailored vision training program for your eyes and track your improvement. The level of difficulty can be changed in sessions, much like adding weights to dumbbell in the gym. The interactive nature of Vision Vision helps kids stay engaged and allows for longer training sessions.³

Patients young and old can benefit from vision training.⁴ Vision training is often recommended to school-aged children to assist with their learning in the classroom, but it can be helpful for many other people including athletes and avid readers.

To find out more and to see if you or your child is a candidate for Vivid Vision, visit our Vivid Vision webpage, or contact our friendly staff.

References:

1. Backus, B. Dornbos, B. Tran, T. Blaha, J. Gupta, M. (2018). “Use of virtual reality to assess and treat weakness in human stereoscopic vision”. Electronic Imaging, 2018(4): 1091–1096.
2. Boon, M. Asper, L. Chik, P. Alagiah, P. Ryan, M. (2020). “Treatment and compliance with virutal reality and anaglyph-based training programs for convergence insufficiency”. Clinical & Experimental Optometry, 103(6): 870-876.
3. Fortenbacher, D. L., Bartolini, A., Dornbos, B., & Tran, T. (2018). “Vision Therapy and Virtual Reality Applications”. Advances in Ophthalmology and Optometry, 3(1): 39–59.
4. Žiak, P., Holm, A., Halička, J. et al. “Amblyopia treatment of adults with dichoptic training using the virtual reality oculus rift head mounted display: preliminary results”. BMC Ophthalmol, 17(1): 105-112.