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  HOMEPAGE of VISION CONCEPTS (The Clinic)
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SYNDROMES AND DISEASES FOUND IN VISION

from PROCESSES IN BIOLOGICAL VISION

by JAMES T. FULTON


Last date 15 Jan 05             Rhodonine™ and Activa™: See Citation Page

INTRODUCTION

Has NO ROBOTS in head

In developing the theory presented in PROCESSES IN BIOLOGICAL VISION, many new insights have been documented relative to some common and some obscure errors related to the visual system. This page documents some of knowledge gained related to these conditions. Only those conditions analyzed in the above work will be addressed on these webpages. The material on these pages is directed primarily to Academics but is made available to the general public. No responsibility is assumed for the inappropriate use of this information in medicine.

The material will conform to a strict usage of the words found under the heading Definition of Terms.

Specific Syndromes
Specific Diseases
Residual Conditions after intervention
Definition of Terms
Classification of Diseases and Syndromes

The following material is based on the Electrolytic Theory of the Neuron and the Tetrachromatic Theory of Human Vision. It relies on many concepts beyond those addressed within the widely adopted chemical theory of the neuron.

While this site may define the mechanism creating a disease quite explicitly, it is a very early day in discovering the cause (the etiology)and potential cure (or aleviation)of many of these conditions.

SPECIFIC SYNDROMES

Several syndromes are addressed on this web site. Some are generally recognized in the literature while others have been specifically defined based on this work. Those addressed on their own web page include.

  1. Achromatopsia-- A syndrome frequently involving photophobia, nystagmus, amblyopia and retinal achromatopia (without an s)
  2. Achromatopia (without the s)--also known in the vernacular as cerebral color blindness or rod monochromaticity. The subject does not exhibit nystagmus or amblyopia.
  3. Hale's Syndrome--A set of diseases reported by Alison Hale, who has suffered a number of developmental diseases since birth
  4. Irlen's syndrome--A set of individual diseases related to the oculomotor servomechanisms of vision that have been documented working with school children exhibiting reading disorders.

These four syndromes are fundamentally different in their origin.

Achromatopsia is based on an error in the in the photoreceptors of the retina. Several specific genetic code errors have been identified. They involving the amplitude dynamic range of the visual signals produced by the photoreceptor cells compared to the amplitude dynamic range of the signaling channels available.

Achromatopia is based on an error within the brain (not within the retina). The errors are believed to be in the lateral geniculate nuclei of the midbrain.

Hales Syndrome is based on the introduction of excess noise into the pulse signaling neurons of the luminance channels of vision prior to the signals being transmitted from the ganglion cells of the retina over the optic nerve to the brain.

Irlen's Syndrome is based on the introduction of an extraneous signal into the oculomotor servomechanism of the visual system resulting in a variety of perceived errors related to the scene in object space.

SPECIFIC DISEASES

The following diseases are addressed on this web site.

  1. Myopia--A disease of the accomodation (focus) servomechanism of the eyes. When exhibited beginning at an early age, it is development in character. However, it is incipient and progressive with age. It is suffered by a majority of the population over the age of 45 years.
  2. Snowy Vision--A rare condition characterized by "snow" that comes in two types. First dark well spaced dots that cover the entire field of view and move randomly. Second low contrast snow, similar to that seen on a television screen, that appears as a semitransparent screen that obscures objects in the field of view at all light levels. There is no association between the mechanism causing the first symptom and the mechanisms associated with scotopic vision. The second form is closely associated with the mechanisms of scotopic vision.
  3. Astereopsis--A disease of the vergence servomechanism of the eyes. The subject is unable to perceive depth in their interpretation of images in object space. The condition is frequently masked within the conditions described as nystagmus. In documented nystagmus, the subjects eyes do not converge properly, and remain converged long enough for the perception of depth to occur. One of the causes of astereopsis is also found in the syndrome of achromatopsia. However, it is usually masked in that syndrome by the more obvious symptoms of nystagmus. The subject may not be aware of the existance of the phenomenon of stereoptic vision.

RESIDUAL CONDITIONS AFTER INTERVENTION

This section will collect documentation relating to unusual conditions not generally addressed in the popular or academic literature.

  1. Residual Accommodation following Cataract Surgery
    • Following modern cataract surgery, subjects frequently report some accommodation in the absence of a flexible lens in their eye. This is a result of the sophisticated neuro-muscular configuration of the lens system. The action is discussed in accommodation after cataract surgery.

DEFINITION of TERMS

Disease– An alteration in the state of the body or of some of its organs, interrupting or disturbing the performance of the vital functions, and causing or threatening pain and weakness; applied figuratively to the mind. Disease is the leading medical term. Disorder means much the same, with perhaps some slight reference to an irregularity of the system.

Specifically, a disease is a particular abnormality within the visual system that cannot be described as the sum of other individual diseases. If a condition can be described as the sum of two or more individual diseases, it will be described as a syndrome. A complex syndrome may contain multiple sub-syndromes or a mixture of syndromes and diseases.

Pseudo syndrome- Used to describe a series of related symptoms found individually among a population.

Symptoms- The reported or observed effects caused by an underlying disease.

Syndrome- Used here in regard to one individual. (see pseudo-syndrome)

  1. A group of symptoms that collectively indicate or characterize a disease, a psychological disorder, or another abnormal condition.
    • a. A complex of symptoms indicating the existence of an undesirable condition or quality.
    • b. A distinctive or characteristic pattern of behavior.

CLASSIFICATION OF DISEASES AND SYNDROMES

The most effective classification of syndromes and diseases relates them to

By drilling down through the block diagram, any required level of specificity and exclusivity can be achieved. At the next level,the conditions can be related to:

  • a series of operational modes defined within the BLOCK DIAGRAM.
  • At the next level,
  • a specific morphological feature of the visual system.
  • whether the symptoms of the condition relate to conscious image perception or to unconscious signal manipulations. The latter choice can be further divided between
    • errors in the oculomotor servomechanism controlling the eyes or
    • errors in the feature extraction engines associated with sensory correlation (such as with the aural system to achieve a variety of reflex actions).

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