Blind Spot Enlargement In Non-Athletes

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Blind Spot Enlargement in Non-Athletes


Abstract
Everyone has a blind spot in the visual field caused by an absence of nerves on the retinal wall where the nerve ganglia enter. Our brains "correct" this blind spot by filling-in the missing information so that we do not notice the blind spot in normal, daily activity. There have been a few studies conducted to determine how the brain compensates for the phenomenon.

Recent studies indicate that in certain people seeking chiropractic treatment, unequal blind spots result from muscoloskeletal misalignments. This research has been controversial; however, it brings up several interesting questions. There are conditions that can damage the retina, causing blind spots in the visual field. It is generally assumed that athletes maintain a better level of general health, via exercise and a healthier diet, than those who do not engage in athletic pursuits.

This study used blind spot mapping techniques of the chiropractic industry to map the blind spots of 10 athletes and 10 non-athletes. The blind spots of athletes and non-athletes showed a statistically significant difference.

Introduction
Every eye has a blind spot .The blind spot is the hole in the retinal wall where the nerve ganglia pass though. This area of the retina contains no photoreceptors and therefore creates a black spot in every person's vision. The gap created by the blind spot is approximately 6 degrees of the total visual field, which is a large area, relatively speaking. We do not see this area in our normal functioning because our brain has a mechanism for "filling in" the missing information. The information that would normally be received by the blind spot is projected onto the other eye and the brain essentially "averages" the image (Lou and Chen, 2003).

The blind spot in physical structure and given the normal variances in human physiology, it would be expected that there would be little variation in ...