What Is Neuro-Ophthalmology?

Neuro-Ophthalmology is a subspecialty of Neurology and Ophthalmology, and is the field of medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of brain, systemic, and eye diseases that affects nerves and muscles related to the eyes and vision.

Neuro-Ophthalmology is a subspecialty of both Neurology and Ophthalmology. Doctors who specialize in Neuro-Ophthalmology may be trained in Neurology, Ophthalmology, or both, and do an extra year or two of fellowship training in Neuro-Ophthalmology.

Neuro-Ophthalmology is a subspecialty of both Neurology and Ophthalmology. Doctors who specialize in Neuro-Ophthalmology may be trained in Neurology, Ophthalmology, or both, and do an extra year or two of fellowship training in Neuro-Ophthalmology.

A neuro-ophthalmologist is a medical doctor who is specifically trained to evaluate these types of conditions, which typically requires at least 5 years of residency and fellowship training after medical school.  Neuro-ophthalmologists may be board-certified in Neurology, Ophthalmology, or both.  Some neuro-ophthalmologists have additional training to do surgery around the eyes; other neuro-ophthalmologists have additional training to perform special tests.

Neuro-ophthalmologists may have the challenging task of evaluating visual problems that may not have any simple explanation.  Because many people who see a neuro-ophthalmologist have already seen many other specialists, a neuro-ophthalmologist will often have to review a person’s complete medical records and previous tests, as well as ask for a very detailed history and perform special testing in order to determine the diagnosis and treatment.  Because neuro-ophthalmologists are trained to carefully evaluate symptoms related to vision and the brain, they can sometimes reduce the costs of expensive tests by their thorough exam.

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