What is CVI?
Cerebral/Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) is a neurological visual disorder. Vision loss or impairment due to brain injury or disease can occur at any point in the life-span.
CVI can be found in children who function at levels equivalent to typical peers as well as in children with mild to severe disability. The degree of neurological damage and CVI depends upon the time of onset, as well as the location and intensity of the damage. It is a condition that indicates the visual systems of the brain do not consistently interpret or understand what the eyes see.
CVI is suspected by:
Causes of CVI include lack or insufficiency of oxygen (anoxia, hypoxia, ischaemia, and asphyxia), intraventricular hemorrhage, developmental brain anomalies, head injury, hydrocephalus, infections of the central nervous system such as encephalitis and meningitis or unknown causes.
Unique visual behaviors of CVI (child may demonstrate 1 or more of the behaviors):
The degree of CVI can range from mild (typically developing child with limited atypical visual behaviors) to severe (multiple disabilites with many atypical visual behaviors).
The degree of neurological damage and CVI depends upon the time of onset, as well as the location and intensity of the damage. It is a condition that indicates that the visual systems of the brain do not consistently interpret or understand what the eyes see. The presence of CVI is not an indicator of the child’s cognitive ability. Some visual behaviors can be resolved, while others may need environmental accommodations for the child to be successful in school and at home. |