Abstract
Stroke damage to V1 causes homonymous visual field cuts that are reported to exhibit spontaneous improvements in the early months post-stroke, thereafter becoming stable and permanent. We recently developed a new method for quantifying Humphrey perimetry, the current gold standard for measuring visual field loss clinically (Cavanaugh & Huxlin, 2017). Here, we used this new method to more precisely track how visual field defects change after stroke. We reviewed over 300 medical records of stroke patients diagnosed with “homonymous hemianopia” at Strong Memorial Hospital since 2012. Excluding patients with confounding conditions generated a cohort of 38 patients with 97 visual fields. Patients were grouped by time from stroke to first Humphrey test: 0–2, 2–4, 4–8, 8–12, 12–24 and >24 weeks. Difference maps were computed between fields for every patient. Areas where visual sensitivity improved/worsened by ≥6dB were calculated and compared between groups. Statistical significance was determined using the Mann-Whitney U test. At 0–2 weeks, the mean area improved was 221±86 deg2 (n=10); by >24 weeks, it was only 42±17 deg2 (n=22), a significant decrease (p24 weeks, it was 83±37 deg2, a significant increase (p24 weeks (p