- Olympian Stephen Nedoroscik, aka “The Pommel Horse guy,” is living with two eye conditions, strabismus and coloboma.
- Strabismus, or crossed eyes, occurs when the eyes point in different directions. This can cause the brain to see two images or double vision. Coloboma involves missing eye tissue.
- Most commonly, strabismus occurs in infants and young children, but adults can also develop strabismus later in life.
Olympian Stephen Nedoroscik — also known as “The Pommel Horse guy” — helped the U.S. men’s gymnastics team win a bronze medal in the team final on July 29 — its first in 16 years.
But with the thick-rimmed glasses he wears when not competing, he is also raising awareness about an eye condition called strabismus.
Here’s what to know about this condition.
What is strabismus?
Strabismus, or crossed eyes, is when the eyes point in different directions, which can affect vision. One eye may look straight ahead while the other turns up, down, in, or out.
This misalignment can shift from one eye to the other, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). Nedoroscik posted on TikTok about his ability to “switch [his] dominant eye on command, with both eyes open.”
With typical vision, both eyes point in the same direction. Each eye sends an image to the brain, which combines them to create a single, three-dimensional image. This allows you to tell how far away objects are, what’s known as depth perception.
When one eye is misaligned, the brain continues to see two images rather than the combined image. In a young child, the brain learns to see only the image from the eye pointed ahead, ignoring the other image.
In adults who develop strabismus after childhood, the brain is unable to ignore the image from the misaligned eye. This can cause double vision, blurry vision, or a loss of depth perception.
How do symptoms of strabismus affect Nedoroscik?
Alexander Solomon, MD, surgical neuro-ophthalmologist and strabismus surgeon at Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica, Calif., said double vision is the most common symptom of strabismus.
“This occurs because with strabismus, your eyes function like two misaligned cameras seeing the world at different angles, leading to the images being displaced from one another,” he told Healthline. “This displacement can be vertical, horizontal, diagonal or even rotated slightly depending on the type of eye misalignment.”
Nedoroscik recently told Today that he cannot see clearly without his glasses.
Solomon said the double vision that occurs with strabismus is known as binocular because it only happens when both eyes are open.
In contrast, monocular double vision doesn’t go away when a person closes one eye, he said. This type is not caused by strabismus.
Some people with misaligned eyes may not have double vision. This can be because one eye doesn’t see well enough to form a second image, said Solomon.
“Alternatively, the brain has learned to suppress the vision in the eye — but only when both eyes are open,” he said. “This typically happens if there was an early misalignment or other visual problem in childhood, and the brain learned to adapt.”
Nedoroscik has also posted on TikTok about having a condition called coloboma, which happens when part of the eye tissue is missing. This can affect one or both eyes and different parts of the eye, such as the iris, lens, or retina.
Coloboma can cause vision loss and sensitivity to light, which Nedoroscik has also posted about.
What causes strabismus?
An estimated 2% to 5% of the general population—or 5 to 15 million Americans—are affected by strabismus.
It usually develops in infants and young children and should be checked by an eye doctor.
“In children, eye misalignment can be a sign of something potentially more serious, so it is important to have a pediatric ophthalmologist assess the child’s eyes,” said Aaron Miller, MD, adjunct assistant professor of ophthalmology at Houston Methodist.
“Sometimes it’s a simple thing [to correct], such as the need for glasses,” he told Healthline.
Most adults with strabismus have had this condition since they were young, according to the AAO. They can also develop strabismus later in life due to problems with the muscles that move the eyes, or the nerves that control those muscles.
According to the AAO, causes of adult strabismus include:
- Accidents or head injury
- Damage to the eye muscles or nerves during eye surgery
“A patient with new and severe double vision should contact their eye doctor immediately for evaluation,” said Solomon, “and may even need to go to an emergency department for further workup depending on the exam findings.”
If the double vision is intermittent and has been gradually increasing over months to years, it may not be as urgent, he said. However, an eye checkup is still needed.
Miller recommends that adults with strabismus first have a complete eye exam done by their regular eye doctor. “This will be important to evaluate and rule out other issues that can be managed before referral to an adult specialist, like myself,” he said.
How is strabismus treated?
The earlier that a child’s strabismus is treated, the better. Untreated strabismus can lead to a permanent reduction of vision in one eye, according to the American Optometric Association (AOA). This condition is known as amblyopia or lazy eye.
However, it’s never too late to treat strabismus.
“One of the most common things that I encounter is an adult who thinks that they are too old to have an eye misalignment addressed,” said Miller. “Not only can adults have surgical options for eye realignment, but the surgical procedure is often covered by medical insurance.”
In adults, the first step is identifying the underlying cause of strabismus, he emphasized.
“Sometimes it can be an age-related issue that requires special glasses,” he said. “But on rare occasions, it can be a sign of something more serious, such as a stroke or tumor.”
Solomon said some forms of adult-onset strabismus will go away on their own or if the underlying medical condition is treated.
If that doesn’t work, covering one eye with a patch may be offered to strengthen one eye. However, Solomon said this often leads to “unsatisfactory” results.
Instead, a doctor may prescribe special prism glasses, which bend the light rays before they enter the eye so that a person sees one image instead of two.
“While [prism glasses] do not physically realign the eyes, they allow the images that are viewed through both eyes to be synchronized to address double vision,” said Miller.
This approach is for people with a smaller and stable misalignment of the eyes. For a more severe misalignment, or if a person cannot tolerate prism glasses, a doctor may offer surgery to reposition one or both eyes.
“These surgeries, which are done by strabismus surgeons — who can be pediatric ophthalmologists or surgical neuro-ophthalmologists — are often successful,” said Solomon.
And “unlike prism glasses, surgery can help a patient who has no double vision, but is bothered by the appearance from their strabismus,” he said.
While strabismus surgery can provide a dramatic relief of symptoms, said Miller, it may not be a complete fix.
“Sometimes there can be much smaller residual eye misalignment,” he said. However, this is generally “well-controlled by the patient and also not visibly noticeable to those they may interact with.”
Takeaway
Olympian Stephen Nedoroscik, also known as “The Pommel Horse guy” wears thick-rimmed glasses when he is not competing. This is due to having two eye conditions — strabismus and coloboma.
Strabismus, or crossed eyes, is when the eyes point in different directions. One eye may look ahead while the other points up, down, in, or out. This can cause double vision. Coloboma is when part of the eye tissue is missing, which can lead to vision loss and sensitivity to light.
Strabismus most commonly occurs in infants and young children, but adults can also develop strabismus later in life.
New cases of strabismus in adults can be caused by head injuries or accidents, damage to the eye muscles or nerves during surgery, or health problems such as diabetes, brain tumors, or stroke.
‘Pommel Horse Guy’ Stephen Nedoroscik Wears Glasses Due to 2 Eye Conditions
Source: Pinoy Lang Sakalam
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