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Dr. Tina Dang Aldana has always considered herself a ‘teacher at heart,’ and her positon as traumatic brain injury optometrist at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center utilizes that skill set with every patient she treats. This passion was also fueled by the loss of her brother-in-law who was the first and only optometrist killed in action while serving with the U.S. armed forces. Her background includes degrees in Education and a Doctor of Optometry, combined with training in ocular disease and neuro-optometry, which led to pursuing specialized care for TBI patients.
TBI Vision Rehabilitation is largely connected to education. Dang Aldana teaches patients about neuroplasticity, which is the brain’s ability to reorganize itself throughout life, to compensate for injury and disease and to adjust their activities in response to new situations or to changes in their environment. Not only does she treat wounded warriors from downrange and service members with concussion injuries in garrison, she also provides care to family members and civilians, including children and teens with sports-related injuries.
The need for Dang Aldana’s specialty is great, as 95 percent of concussion patients experience visual consequences. Some very common symptoms related to post trauma vision syndrome include blurry vision, double vision, difficulty reading and concentrating, dizziness, poor balance, light sensitivity and headaches. Without treatment, these symptoms can often interfere with work and activities of daily living.
Prior to Dang Aldana joining the LRMC team, there was no TBI optometry role defined or filled at LRMC. Today, the integral benefits of her work are clear, and with every patient whose condition improves comes healing on a broader scale and more measurable medicine. Today’s science demands providers like Dang Aldana to forge new treatment paths to best care for our brave service members who sustain head injuries.
“Working in the TBI clinic here at LRMC is my dream job where combining neurology, rehabilitation, and other specialty care truly makes a difference,” Dang Aldana proudly noted. “The top-tier medical services at LRMC enable us to take a multidisciplinary approach, working closely with a talented group of case managers, occupational therapists, pysical therapists, psychologists and a neurologist to help patients get better faster and more comprehensively.”
As a recognized leader in her field, Dang Aldana recently hosted the chief of optometry from Vicenza who came to Landstuhl to learn more about TBI optometry processes in order to provide the same level of care after patients leave LRMC. Dang Aldana is also an in-demand speaker at medical conferences and currently a principal investigator on a joint publishing effort, but still finds time to pursue her other teaching passion – yoga. In both environments, Dang Aldana is healing bodies and minds with the same degree of commitment, care and precision.
It is important for patients to be aware of the symptoms of concussion and let their medical providers know about their history. A specific and specialized eye exam is required to diagnose and manage TBI vision problems. Providers and patients with questions related to TBI, optometry, or vision rehab may call the LRMC TBI Clinic at 90-5601 or 06371-9464-5601.
