Convergence Excess

Contents:

Definition

What They See

Common Symptoms

Biographical Information

More Information

Definition

Convergence is the name given to the movement of the eyes when they move inward toward each other, as when reading. Convergence Excess (CE) occurs when the eyes move inward too much when reading. In other words, the eyes are mildly crossed when looking at a near object. This excessive inward movement can cause words to appear jumbled, blurred, or even doubled.

In a normal working ocular system, the accommodation system (the focusing system for near) and the convergence system (the eye alignment system) work together to make the words on the page appear clear. For people with CE, the accommodation and convergence systems are not working in unison, which causes the words on the page to appear blurred or double.

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What They See

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Common Symptoms

Those who suffer from CE often have symptoms of:

Eyestrain

Reading below grade level

Blurred vision when reading

Inattentiveness to school work

Double Vision

Headache

Loosing their Place when reading

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Biographical Information

Jeff Schletzbaum schleff@hotmail.com

3rd year Optometry Student at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

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More Information

http://www.covd.org/

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Last Revised: May 6, 2002