In rare cases of stroke and brain damage , patients can fall back their sight altogether . Disorientated and incognizant of what ’s happened , it can take clinicians days before they establish that the somebody has become blind .
But what if the patient themselves do n’t have intercourse that they are blind ? In extremely rare fate , someone that has no sight at all will entirely believe , often to the compass point of anger , that they can see perfectly o.k. . With just 28 cases in recorded story , these people have been diagnose with Anton syndrome .
What is Anton syndrome?
Anton syndrome , otherwise hump as Anton ’s cecity or visual anosognosia , is named after brain doctor Gabriel Anton and describes someone that is cortically blind ( blindness due to damage to the brain ’s visual region ) but who confabulates imagination that make them believe they have not lose their sight .
They will adamantly arrogate that they are not blind and can see well , and will dismiss any evidence submit otherwise . Such patients often feel serious mental confusion and will attempt to misguide their caregivers by attempting feats that are difficult for a blind someone to do , often stumbling over objective or trying to take the air through shut doors .
Soon , doctors and nurses may commence to surmise they can not see , but help them through their symptoms can be extremely difficult and distressing . It is especially common in elderly brain combat injury patients , further complicating the diagnosis and management , though it has been reported in a individual as young assix class older .
Anton syndrome was first described clinically by Gabriel Anton when observe a69 - year - honest-to-goodness milkmaid , who had harm to both worldly lobe and was both deaf and blind . However , cases that could restrict as Anton syndrome have been documented as far back as the Romanic time , when a woman calledHarpastebecame blind but stanchly believe she was not . She had attendants constantly changing the room as it was “ too coloured ” and the entire trial by ordeal was described inSeneca ’s Moral letter to Luciliusin 63 CE .
Treatment focuses on the movement of sightlessness , which in the case of stroke patients is extremely limited . In some vitrine , multiple sclerosis ( MS ) has led to Anton syndrome , and drugs that alleviate MS did help one patient .
