Bendy Bodies with Dr. Linda Bluestein

Eyes Problems in EDS with Dr. Eric Singman and cohost Dr. Dacre Knight (Ep 189)

15 snips
Mar 26, 2026
Guest
Dacre Knight
Guest
Eric Singman
Dr. Dacre Knight, UVA EDS clinician and recurring cohost, and Dr. Eric Singman, neuro-ophthalmologist specializing in vision-brain disorders, map how eye symptoms intersect with EDS. They explain which eye specialists to see, red flags needing urgent care, reading strain linked to neck posture, the pressure spectrum in intracranial issues, pitfalls of prisms, and how to spot low-evidence vision therapies.
Ask episode
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
ANECDOTE

Mislabeling Orthostatic Symptoms Hid A Carotid Emboli

  • A patient who assumed all vision dimming was POTS actually had carotid microemboli visible as Hollenhorst plaques and retinal hemorrhages.
  • That diagnosis led to carotid intervention and illustrates why premature labeling can miss serious causes.
ADVICE

Use Headache Position To Distinguish High Versus Low CSF Pressure

  • High intracranial pressure (IIH) causes headache worse lying down, pulse-synchronous tinnitus, papilledema, and vision dimming on bending; low pressure improves lying flat.
  • Ask positional pattern (worse lying down vs better lying flat) to distinguish high vs low CSF pressure.
ADVICE

Avoid Knee-Jerk Spinal Taps In EDS Patients

  • Avoid routine lumbar puncture in EDS without weighing leak risk; use MRI/optic nerve ultrasound, SVP checks, and therapeutic Diamox trials first.
  • If papilledema plus imaging suggests IIH, consider medical trial before invasive CSF sampling in fragile patients.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Get the app