Vision Therapy - Behavioural Visual Therapy

Behavioural Visual Therapy

Behavioural VT aims to treat problems including difficulties of visual attention and concentration, which behavioral optometrists classify as visual information processing weaknesses. These manifest themselves as an inability to sustain focus or to shift focus from one area of space to another. Some assert that poor eye tracking affects reading skills, and that improving tracking can improve reading.

This includes vision therapy for: Peripheral Vision, Color Perception, Gross Visual-Motor, Fine Visual-Motor, and Visual Perception.

Some of the exercises involve the use of:

• Marsden balls
• Rotation trainers
• Syntonics
• Balance board/beams
• Saccadic fixators
• Directional sequencers

Behavioral vision therapy is practiced primarily by optometrists after doing extra studies in this area. Major optometric organizations, including the American Optometric Association, the American Academy of Optometry, the College of Optometrists in Vision Development, and the Optometric Extension Program, support the assertion that non-strabismic visual therapy does not directly treat learning disorders, but rather addresses underlying visual problems which are claimed to affect learning potential.

Major organizations, including the International Orthoptic Association and the American Academy of Ophthalmology have alternatively so far concluded that there is no current validity for clinically significant improvements in vision with Behavioural Vision Therapy, therefore they do not practice it.