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    Eye Rolling

    Has anyone had this experience? When I bend my head to read or write my eyes roll back & forth for a few seconds, losing focus.
    I have had this going on way back when I was a kid and really didn't think much of it, it didn't happen this often until lately, it's been happening every time I try to fill out a form for the dr or writing something or if I am reading.
    I told my neuro about this and he says it could be a MS symptom. I drives me crazy as it is happening more frequently and I'm afraid I may be developing ON and do not want to loose my vision. Please let me know if any of you have had this happen. It's so frustrating and I have to stop what I am doing for awhile and raise my head back up.
    Only happens when I lower my head to read or write.
    Thanks.
    Maggienor

    #2
    Yes it "could" be.......Could also be something else?

    I have a similar variation but horizontal instead. Looking L/R my eyes keep going past the stop point. MY oldest son took me to the P/T eval (told not to drive myself, poss sick) and both of them were LOL at my cartoon eyes.

    I was taught to move my eyes FIRST in the direction before moving m head. It helped me, even with looking up. I had a horrible time with keeping my balance and looking up, like into an atrium.

    My suggestion, try looking down with your eyes BEFORE moving your head, who knows maybe it might help???


    Gomer Sir Falls-a-lot

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      #3
      Could be MS related or not.

      I would see my MS doc about it and I would consider it urgent.

      It sounds like it could be Nystagmus related. I would see my MS Neuro if I experienced anything related to my vision because of possible poor balance, walking and falling related to vision problems.

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        #4
        Originally posted by Maggienor View Post
        When I bend my head to read or write my eyes roll back & forth for a few seconds, losing focus. ... I'm afraid I may be developing ON and do not want to loose my vision.
        Hi Maggienor:
        What you're describing has nothing to do with optic neuritis. The term "optic neuritis" is frequently misused as a catch-all term for any kind of eye or visual dysfunction related to MS, but it has only one meaning.

        ON refers only to inflammation of the optic nerve (aka cranial nerve II, or CNII), which is the "cable" of nerves from the retina that connects the eye to the brain. It's the only nerve that supplies vision, and it's a sensory nerve only. The optic nerve has no motor function and is not involved in eye movement.

        Eye movement (including the rolling eyes you're describing) is controlled by other nerves, and nerve centers in the brain. Those nerves and nerve centers aren't involved in the transmission of visual signals, so it's anatomically impossible for you to lose your vision from the motor function you're having. Your vision can get blurry from a motor dysfunction, but you can't lose your vision from it. If you ever do lose your vision, it must be from something else.

        Because you've had the same trouble somewhat even when you were a kid, it's not possible to know exactly how much MS is involved in the trouble you're having now. Children often have eye movement disorders that aren't related to disease or injury. It's just the way the way their visual systems are wired. And because there doesn't appear to be any baseline information from when you were a kid, that possibility can't be ruled out.

        Nor can it be assumed that, just because a person with MS later develops an eye movement disorder, any other pre-existing eye movement disorder had to have been from MS. I'm mentioning this specifically because there are some folks who think that everything is MS and will bend any situation to fit that theory.

        So, in your case, it could be that the fatigue of MS has made a pre-existing condition worse and is only indirectly involved. But it's also possible that you have a new situation -- that might be the same as or only similar to the old one -- that is directly caused by MS.

        You said that you've already told your neuro about it. He said that it could be a symptoms of MS. But did he do anything else?

        What you're describing sounds like nystagmus or nystagmoid (nystagmus-like) eye movements. It could be positional nystagmus related to your balance system. Since the problem has gotten worse, you should ideally be worked up to uncover the cause. It might be that nothing can be done about it, but knowing the cause could be important to more accurately understanding your MS and possibly to your choice of treatment.

        Having your neuro just say that it could be a symptom of MS doesn't go far enough. In your position, I would ask the neuro for a referral to a neuro-ophthalmologist, who is an appropriate specialist for the problem and can do that eye movement workup.

        You said that you have the rolling eyes when you drop your head to read or write. What happens if you hold your head upright and lower only your eyes to read? Do your eyes roll in the same way with your head upright? What happens if you drop your head but you aren't looking at anything in particular or trying to focus? If you drop your head with your eyes closed, can you feel your eyes moving?

        What I'm going to say next sounds like the old joke: Doctor, it hurts when I do this. So the doctor says, "Then don't do that."

        If the eye movement problem occurs only when your head is dropped and goes away when you raise your head up, then you'll do better to relieve it if you modify your reading and writing style to keep your head more upright and drop your eyes more. Of course, if the problem is the same when your head is up and your eyes are turned downward, that won't help. But if the trigger is your head position, then holding your head up sounds like your only option in lessening the problem. You: Doctor, I get rolling eyes when I drop my head. Doctor: Then don't drop your head. I'll refer you to a neuro-ophthalmologist.

        Changing your reading and writing position may not be what you want to do, so you'll have to choose which option you prefer. As you make your choice, though, be assured that your situation is NOT optic neuritis, or even the precursor to it, and you won't lose your vision from it.

        Caution: not proofread before posting.

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          #5
          Thanks Redwings

          I only have this trouble when I have my head down to read or write, I will ask my neuro for a referral for optomologist, thanks you have cleared up some of confusion, I was also looking up stagmatus and I beleive it may be that as well.
          Thanks so much for this help and I will keep updating as I find out more.
          Maggienor

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