A client presents to the emergency department complaining of loss of part of his vision. An MRI with contrast reveals multiple aneurysms of the circle of Willis. The client is diagnosed with "bitemporal heteronymous anopia."

Question

For this client, what effect will this have on his vision?
A) With both eyes open, the client has full binocular visual fields
B) Bilateral loss of peripheral vision on both sides with a narrow binocular field
C) Total, irreversible blindness
D) Loss of a quarter of the visual field in both eyes

Answer 1

Ans: A
Feedback:
The loss of the temporal fields (nasal retina) of both eyes is called bitemporal heteronymous anopia. With both eyes open, the person with bilateral defects still has the full binocular visual field. The loss of the same half-fields in the two eyes is called a homonymous loss, and the abnormality is called homonymous hemianopia. Blindness in one eye is called anopia. If half of the visual field for one eye is lost, the defect is called hemianopia; if a quarter of the field is lost, it is called quadrantanopia. Loss of the temporal or peripheral visual fields on both sides results in a narrow binocular field, commonly called tunnel vision.