What is visual field loss?
Visual field is the medical word for the full area that we can see: our visual world. If an area of our visual world is blurred or missing with the rest clear then visual field loss is present. It is due to damage to some of the special vision parts of the brain. The relationship between brain damage and visual field loss is all opposite to what you might think. The right side of the brain is responsible for seeing the left side of the visual world. The left side of the brain sees the right side of the visual world. If the right side of the brain is damaged the left side of the visual world may not be seen. In the same way the upper part of the back of the brain is responsible for seeing the lower part of the visual world. A child with damage in this area will not see the ground when looking straight ahead. The child may then tend to trip over things.