Study of prevalence of non-strabismic binocular vision anomalies in a tertiary centre: An important but often forgotten cause of ophthalmic headache

To study the presence of non strabismic binocular vision anomalies in young patients presenting with headache.  A prospective, non-interventional study of 110 patients was conducted for a period of one year in our tertiary eye care institute after obtaining informed consent and taking into consideration the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Patients presenting with asthenopic symptoms were subjected to thorough ophthalmic examination. After excluding refractive errors, patients were further subjected to detailed orthoptic evaluation (including accommodation and convergence assessment). Other non-ocular causes of headache were ruled out by appropriate referrals. Out of 110 patients, 33% were found to have accommodative insufficiency, 14% were having convergence insufficiency and 4% showed both accommodative and convergence insufficiency. 49% patients showed no extraocular muscle imbalance and were referred to relevant specialities for further evaluation. It is important to perform a thorough evaluation of patients presenting with headache for the presence of non strabismic binocular vision anomalies after ruling out other ophthalmic causes.