Therapeutic training in post-stroke disturbances of vision

Introduction: Vision disturbances are a frequent sequel of stroke. Damage to primary or secondary visual cortical areas can lead to chronic or temporary dysfunction of vision that hampers recovery from stroke. Nevertheless, they are rarely regarded as a prominent problem for neurorehabilitation.Aim of the study: This paper presents a review of current knowledge on possible therapeutic interventions in one of the most frequent vision disturbances following vascular brain damage, i.e. visual field defects.Study form: We reviewed data from the literature pertaining to theoretical background of various therapeutic approaches to vision disturbances as well as empirical evidence of the effectiveness of these approaches.Conclusions: The analysed data suggest that improvement of visual function in post-stroke patients is possible with the help of a therapeutic training that uses preserved functions such as visual scanning or residual vision. The objectively observed training-induced improvement of visual field defects and of the related deficits is frequently reflected in a better performance during activities of daily-living.