CHAPTER 9

READING, DYSLEXIA AND Tsehay Kassa (Msc, ped. opto,.)

COLORED LENSES/OVERLAYS
OUTLINE
 Dyslexia
 Coloured Lenses/Overlays
 Meares-Irlen syndrome
 Pattern glare
 Optometric concerns
OBJECTIVE
By the end of this session, you are expected to :
 Define dyslexia and meares- irlen’s syndrome
 Explain their major impact on academic performance
 Identify the use of colored lenses / overlays
 List out the associated signs and symptoms of SSS
DYSLEXIA
Definition
Is primarily used to describe difficulty with language processing and its
impact on reading, writing and spelling
CONT…
Three basic types of dyslexia:
1. Dysnemkinesia ("motoric")
2. Dysphonesia ("auditory")
3. Dyseidesia ("visual")
CONT…
 The dysnemkinetic type is associated with letter reversals when writing
linguistic symbols; for example, doy for boy.

 Letter reversals, as well as other right/left problems, can often be treated

successfully with optometric vision therapy
CONT…
 The two other types of dyslexia require special educational therapy.

 The dysphonetic type of dyslexia results in poor word attack skills

(phonetic decoding),makes semantic substitutions(e.g.’house’ for “home” and
transposition of letters when writing (e.g. solw for slow ) .
CONT…
 The dyseidetic type of dyslexia results in poor sight-word recognition and
inaccurate spelling ,writes phonetic equivalent for irregular words although
phonetically correct, (e.g.bisnis for business, Laf for Laugh).
COLOURED
LENSES/OVERLAYS
 Meares and subsequently Irlen described a condition that Irlen called
“Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome”
 Irlen described it as a perceptual dysfunction related to subjective
difficulties with light source, luminance, intensity, wavelength and colour
contrast

Known as Meares-Irlen syndrome

MEARES-IRLEN SYNDROME
 Symptoms and signs
- Fatigue
- Discomfort
- Inability to sustain attention for sufficient periods
- Sensitivity to light
- Eyestrain
CONT…
- Difficulty focusing
- Words moving on the page
- Words appearing washed out
- Inability to skim/ speed read
- Reads in dim light
- ineffective use of study time
- Loses place when reading
CONT…
Claims:
 ~65% of RD and dyslexics have this syndrome
 90% of these can be successfully treated with tinted lenses ,called Irlen
filters
 Eliminates discomfort ass c reading and improves reading performance
 Scotopic sensitivity syndrome is a distinct entity and cannot be identified
through vision or medical tests
PATTERN GLARE

 Another explanation for visual discomforts described by Irlen ( symptoms

of astenopia,perceptual distortions and others ) that some people experience
when viewing Repetitive patterns e.g. texts
Pattern Glare
 CONT…
 Migraine: Px have hyperexcitable visual cortex which are susceptible to
photophobia giving that : Visual stimuli that provoke photophobia are v
similar to those that trigger seizures in Px c photosensitive epilepsy
 Px c migraine & epilepsy are sensitive to pattern glare
 Tinted lenses have been used to treat pattern sensitivity in migraine and
visual discomfort
Pattern glare might, therefore, account for the symptoms of Meares-Irlen
syndrome
OPTOMETRIC CONCERNS
 A number of concerns about Irlen’s theories and methods were raised
 Symptoms of SSS are V similar to symptoms of Accommodation,
Binocular Vision and Ocular Motility disorders
 Specifically :
- headaches
- eyestrain
- excessive blinking
- excessive rubbing of eyes
CONT…
- squinting
- intermittent blur,
- occasional double vision
- movement of words on a page
- frequent loss of place
- inability to sustain and concentrate and
- re-reading the same lines unintentionally have been reported
CONT…
Research
 95% of subjects identified as good candidates for Irlen filters had
significant, readily identifiable vision anomalies
 When treated with colour lenses and/or vision therapy, Px showed a
significant improvement in comfort
CONT…
 Research suggests that SSS may not be a distinct syndrome and that most
individuals identified as candidates for Irlen lenses has significant undetected
vision disorders requiring treatment
 Shows that many eye-care professionals are not providing optimal care for
their patients
 CONT…
 Most patients with RD have uncorrected vision disorders
 Once treated c appropriate lenses and vision therapy, these Px become comfortable
 However, there are occasions in which the use of coloured lenses/overlays may help
patients even after their vision disorders have been properly tested and treated.
 Prescribing coloured overlays: Two methods
+ Irlen system and the Intuitive colorimeter
+ A widely accepted method of determining the appropriate colour is not currently
available
CONT…
 Good reading ability requires synchronization of the M-cell and P-cell
systems
 M-cell processing deficits are associated c reading disability
 A problem of the M-cell pathway increases visual response latency = reading
problems
 It has been suggested that certain colours can alter the timing of information
between the two systems and rebalance the activity in the two pathways
THE END!