Hemianopsia is a visual deficit characterized by the loss of half the visual field: it can affect the right or left half (lateral hemianopsia, i.e. vertical) or the upper or lower half (altitudinal hemianopsia, i.e. horizontal).
The term hemianopsia comes from the Greek, where “hemi” means half, “an” means without, and “opsia” means seeing. This alteration of the visual field involves a series of visual and behavioural problems, which negatively affect the quality of life of patients.
Among the most frequent lesions that can cause hemianopsia are:
- Vascular lesions (such as ischaemias or hemorrhages, and aneurysmal dilatations);
- Neoplastic lesions (brain tumours of various kinds);
- Inflammatory lesions
- Demyelinating lesions
- Traumatic lesions
For further information, please visit the dedicated page on hemianopsia, which has been recently updated by our expert
