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When 20/20 Vision Isn’t Enough
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When 20/20 Vision Isn’t Enough

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  • “I’ve just had an eye exam, but I still can’t read.”

  • “I’ve had eye exams, and they’ve told me everything’s OK.”

  • “There’s nothing wrong with my eyes.”

When 20/20 Vision Isn’t Enough

Do any of these statements sound familiar? While most people would say perfect vision entails having 20/20 acuity, for many people that’s not necessarily enough. If your brain isn’t processing the visual signals around you correctly, perfect eyesight isn’t going to do you much good. And while yearly eye exams to check eye health and measure visual acuity are definitely important, problems like a subtle eye misalignment will not be picked up in a standard eye exam.

Recognizing Vertical Heterophoria

Have you ever wondered why, despite having two eyes, you only see one image? Each time you look at something, each eye takes in an image which is then processed by the brain and merged together into one clear picture. This intricate process is dependent on the eyes being perfectly aligned. Any amount of misalignment, no matter how slight, will result in blurred or doubled images being seen by the brain. The brain in turn tries to fix the misalignment by using the extraocular muscles to realign the eyes. The correction lasts only a second, and then the misalignment returns, which is again followed by an alignment correction.

As this misalignment/realignment cycle continues, the eye muscles become more and more overworked, and, as a result of the stress and strain put on them, a range of unpleasant symptoms begin to appear. When the misalignment is vertical, this condition is known as vertical heterophoria (VH).

Symptoms of Vertical Heterophoria

VH can manifest itself in a variety of uncomfortable, painful and even scary symptoms. Some of the most common are:

  • Headaches and migraines

  • Anxiety in large, crowded places

  • Difficulty concentrating

  • Dizziness and nausea

  • Vertigo and/or difficulty with walking and balance

  • Sensitivity to light

  • Feeling disoriented in a moving vehicle

  • Eye pain

Many of these symptoms can be found in common with other medical conditions, and because VH isn’t widely understood by many medical professionals, patients that suffer from it are often misdiagnosed as having other issues. For example, a child who is having difficulty reading, behavior problems and difficulty concentrating at school may not have ADHD; it could be vertical heterophoria.

Schedule a Binocular Vision Test

At Vision Specialists of Michigan, our state-of-the-art technology and treatment methods allow our specialists to detect and treat even the smallest of eye misalignments. For more information on our methods and to schedule a NeuroVisual evaluation to determine if you may be suffering from VH, please give us a call today at (248) 258-9000.

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Dr. Sandy DiPonio earned her optometry degree from Illinois College of Optometry in 1996. She is a highly skilled and experienced eye care professional dedicated to giving her patients of all ages excellent and compassionate care. She has a wide variety of experience in binocular vision, pediatric and adult eye care, ocular disease and contact lens fitting. She strives to provide each of her patients the best quality of life they can achieve with their vision through knowledge and education of treatment options.

Dr. DiPonio is a member of the American Optometric Society and Michigan Optometric Society.

Dr. Sally Hoey has been practicing optometry since graduating from Michigan College of Optometry in 2001. During her time in optometry school, she developed an interest in binocular vision, culminating in a senior thesis involving binocular vision.

Prior to joining Vision Specialists of Michigan, Dr. Hoey specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of vision-related learning problems as well as other binocular vision disorders. Her other areas of interest include specialty contact lens fittings and treating dry eye. Dr. Hoey strives to provide her patients with clear, comfortable vision while meeting their individual needs at the same time.

Dr. Hoey had the opportunity to provide eye care on an optometric mission trip to Guyana, South America and vision screenings at a local medical clinic. She is a member of the American Optometric Association, Michigan Optometric Association, Metropolitan Detroit Optometric Society and the College of Optometrists in Vision Development.

Dr. Jennifer Place graduated with honors from Michigan College of Optometry in 2001.

Before joining Vision Specialists of Michigan, she specialized in treating pediatric and adult patients with binocular vision disorders and vision-related learning problems, as well as fitting specialty contact lenses and managing various types of ocular disease. She enjoys working with patients with unique visual needs, and she takes great pride in providing all patients with highly customized care.

Dr. Place has volunteered for Opening Eyes, a program that provides eye exams to the athletes of the Michigan Special Olympics, and she participated in an international mission to St. Lucia to provide eye care to those in need. Dr. Place is a member of the Detroit Optometric Society, the Michigan Optometric Association, the American Optometric Association, the College of Vision Development, and the Optometric Extension Program Foundation.

Dr. Mary Jo Ference has been practicing optometry since 1990 upon graduating from Ferris State University- Michigan College of Optometry, and is certified in Low Vision Rehabilitation. She has worked at Sinai-Grace Hospital systems for over 20 years before joining Vision Specialists of Michigan in 2013 to work with binocular vision disorders. Her clinical areas of expertise include visual rehabilitation of pediatric and adult patients who have suffered from brain trauma, injury or disease. She has taught both optometry and ophthalmology residents at Sinai Grace Hospital. Dr. Ference has sat on numerous boards, including Sinai Grace Hospital, Berry Out-Patient Surgical Center, and Seedlings Braille Books for the Blind. She is actively involved in area school districts to provide education, training and access for students, teachers, OT’s and PT’s to eye care service rehabilitation information. Dr. Ference has lectured extensively nationally and internationally.

Dr. Debby Feinberg began practicing Optometry in Oakland County in 1983, upon graduating from Illinois College of Optometry. She joined her father, Dr. Paul C. Feinberg, at Mall Optical Center, which was located in Summit Place Mall.

Since 1995 Dr. Feinberg has been developing the field of NeuroVisual Medicine which is the optometric subspecialty that identifies and treats neurological / medical symptoms that originate directly or indirectly in the visual system.

Dr. Feinberg has been performing pioneering work with Binocular Vision Dysfunction (BVD), a condition where a vision misalignment (frequently subtle) creates difficulties with the two eyes working together to create a single 3-dimensional image, and difficulties with the two eyes following that image as it moves.

The symptoms caused by BVD are not usually associated with problems with the visual system, and include headache, dizziness, anxiety and panic, persistent post-concussive symptoms, gait instability and balance problems, frequent falls, neck pain, motion sickness, nausea, and reading and learning problems.

In 2004. Dr. Feinberg established Vision Specialists of Birmingham, specifically designing the practice to accommodate the needs of the NeuroVisual Medicine patient.

In 2011, the office moved to its current location in Bloomfield Hills and updated its name to Vision Specialists of Michigan.