Vision-MDT
Expert Consensus on the Neurovisual Medicine Collaborative Framework (2026)
A Consensus Statement on the Conceptual Framework and Clinical Practice Principles of Neurovisual Medicine
(Discussion Draft)
Preface
Recent advances in neuroscience, vision science, rehabilitation medicine, cognitive science, and developmental medicine have profoundly transformed our understanding of the visual system.
Traditionally, visual disorders have been viewed primarily as diseases of the eye or impairments of visual acuity. However, accumulating evidence from neuroscience, clinical medicine, and rehabilitation research demonstrates that vision is far more than the passive reception of light and image formation. Vision represents a complex neurobiological process through which the central nervous system acquires, integrates, interprets, and utilizes visual information to support perception, cognition, learning, behavior, motor performance, and participation in everyday life.
In contemporary clinical practice, many individuals present with substantial visual-function-related difficulties despite having normal or near-normal visual acuity. Their challenges frequently involve learning, cognition, behavior, motor control, communication, independence, and social participation. Such difficulties are often inadequately explained by traditional ophthalmic examinations alone.
Patients commonly navigate multiple specialties—including ophthalmology, neurology, rehabilitation medicine, psychology, pediatrics, and education—without receiving integrated assessment, coordinated intervention, or longitudinal management.
At the same time, the increasing prevalence of developmental disorders, acquired brain injuries, neurological diseases, visual developmental abnormalities, and complex functional disabilities has generated a growing demand for interdisciplinary, function-oriented healthcare models.
Against this background, the expert panel concludes that there is a need to establish a new interdisciplinary framework—Neurovisual Medicine—which places the relationship between visual function and brain function at its center, prioritizes functional outcomes, and adopts multidisciplinary collaboration as its fundamental clinical approach.
This consensus statement aims to provide a conceptual foundation and practical framework for the development of Neurovisual Medicine in the areas of clinical practice, education, research, and healthcare system development.
1. Definition and Scope of Neurovisual Medicine
1.1 Definition
Neurovisual Medicine is an interdisciplinary field that investigates the relationships among the visual system, brain function, and human functional performance, and develops evidence-informed approaches for assessment, intervention, rehabilitation, and long-term management.
Its central mission is to understand how vision contributes to cognition, learning, movement, behavior, and participation, and to establish clinical frameworks that optimize functional outcomes through neurovisual assessment and intervention.
1.2 Areas of Focus
The field of Neurovisual Medicine encompasses three major domains:
Neurovisual Development
Including:
- Early visual development
- Visual maturation processes
- Interactions between visual experience and brain development
- Developmental neurovisual disorders
Neurovisual Dysfunction
Including:
- Ocular motor dysfunction
- Binocular vision disorders
- Visual-spatial dysfunction
- Visual attention deficits
- Visual cognitive impairment
- Cerebral Visual Impairment (CVI)
- Acquired neurovisual dysfunction
Neurovisual Rehabilitation
Including:
- Functional assessment
- Rehabilitation interventions
- Environmental adaptation
- Assistive technologies
- Long-term functional management
1.3 Disciplinary Characteristics
Neurovisual Medicine is not simply an extension of existing specialties. Rather, it serves as an interdisciplinary bridge connecting:
- Vision Science
- Neuroscience
- Clinical Medicine
- Rehabilitation Medicine
- Psychology
- Education
Its fundamental mission can be summarized as:
Understanding how vision influences function, and how function can be improved through vision.
1.4 Neurovisual Function
Neurovisual Function refers to the capacity to acquire, process, integrate, and utilize visual information in order to support cognition, learning, motor performance, behavior, and social participation.
It encompasses both sensory visual input and the higher-order neural processes through which visual information is interpreted and translated into meaningful real-world performance.
2. The Neurovisual Three-Level Functional Model
The expert panel recommends the Neurovisual Three-Level Functional Model as the foundational theoretical framework of Neurovisual Medicine.
Level 1: Visual Organ Level
This level includes:
- The eye
- Retina
- Optic nerve
- Visual pathways
Central question:
Can visual information be effectively acquired?
Level 2: Neurovisual Processing Level
This level includes:
- Visual attention
- Visual perception
- Visual-spatial processing
- Visual memory
- Visual cognition
- Executive visual functions
- Sensorimotor integration
Central question:
How does the brain interpret and utilize visual information?
Level 3: Functional Participation Level
This level includes:
- Learning
- Mobility and motor performance
- Behavioral regulation
- Social interaction
- Activities of daily living
- Community participation
- Quality of life
Central question:
How does visual function translate into real-world performance and participation?
The panel considers this model to be a practical application and extension of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF).
| Neurovisual Model | ICF Domain |
|---|---|
| Visual Organ Level | Body Structure |
| Neurovisual Processing Level | Body Function |
| Functional Participation Level | Activity and Participation |
The model emphasizes the dynamic interactions among visual structures, neural processing, and functional participation, providing a unified framework for assessment, clinical decision-making, and rehabilitation planning.
3. Consensus Statements
Consensus Statement 1
Neurovisual Medicine should be recognized as an emerging interdisciplinary field grounded in vision neuroscience and supported by an evolving theoretical, research, and clinical framework.
Consensus Statement 2
Visual function is not synonymous with visual acuity.
Assessment of visual function should extend beyond traditional visual acuity testing and include evaluation of visual structures, neurovisual processing, and functional participation.
Consensus Statement 3
Visual dysfunction may arise from peripheral, central, or combined mechanisms.
Comprehensive assessment should include ocular motor control, binocular vision, visual attention, visual cognition, and visual-spatial processing.
Consensus Statement 4
Neurovisual rehabilitation is a process of functional reconstruction based on neuroplasticity.
The goals of intervention extend beyond visual performance to include cognition, learning, adaptive behavior, and participation.
Consensus Statement 5
Multidisciplinary collaboration (MDT) is a fundamental organizational model of Neurovisual Medicine and provides the foundation for integrated assessment, shared decision-making, and coordinated intervention.
Consensus Statement 6
Neurovisual assessment should employ standardized, multidimensional evaluation frameworks encompassing the Visual Organ Level, Neurovisual Processing Level, and Functional Participation Level.
Consensus Statement 7
Clinical services should follow structured pathways incorporating screening, comprehensive assessment, MDT evaluation, individualized intervention, follow-up assessment, and long-term management.
Consensus Statement 8
Outcome evaluation should prioritize functional improvement and participation outcomes rather than isolated impairment-based measures.
Consensus Statement 9
Regional, national, and international collaborative networks should be developed to facilitate standardized assessment, resource sharing, research collaboration, and equitable access to expertise.
Consensus Statement 10
Neurovisual assessment, diagnosis, and rehabilitation should be performed by appropriately trained professionals within established competency and quality assurance frameworks.
Consensus Statement 11
All neurovisual services should be patient-centered and guided by real-world functional needs, participation goals, and quality-of-life outcomes.
4. Recommended Practice Framework
Clinical Practice
Healthcare systems are encouraged to establish Neurovisual MDT programs incorporating:
- Standardized assessment protocols
- Comprehensive reporting systems
- Longitudinal follow-up mechanisms
- Functional outcome monitoring
Core MDT members may include:
- Ophthalmologists
- Neurologists
- Pediatricians
- Rehabilitation physicians
- Low-vision rehabilitation specialists
- Neurovisual rehabilitation specialists
- Occupational therapists
- Psychologists
- Special education professionals
Healthcare Systems
Healthcare institutions are encouraged to:
- Establish Neurovisual Clinics
- Develop MDT operational models
- Build regional collaborative networks
- Implement digital management platforms
- Support neurovisual subspecialty development
Community and Social Support
Partnerships among healthcare, education, community services, and families should be strengthened to support participation-oriented care.
Academic Development
Priority areas include:
- Terminology standardization
- Consensus development
- Multicenter research
- International collaboration
- Professional education and training
5. Research Priorities
Priority research areas include:
Basic Science
- Neurovisual functional models
- Neurovisual development
- Neuroplasticity mechanisms
- Classification systems for neurovisual disorders
Clinical Research
- Standardized assessment tools
- Cerebral visual impairment
- Developmental neurovisual disorders
- Acquired neurovisual dysfunction
Rehabilitation Research
- Intervention effectiveness
- Longitudinal outcomes
- Functional outcome measures
Digital Medicine
- Artificial intelligence-assisted assessment
- Digital rehabilitation technologies
- Tele-neurovisual care
- Big-data platforms
Education and Participation
- School participation
- Learning support
- Family-centered care
- Community inclusion
- Quality-of-life outcomes
6. Limitations
This consensus statement is based on currently available scientific evidence, multidisciplinary clinical experience, and expert deliberation.
As Neurovisual Medicine remains an evolving field, some conceptual frameworks and clinical models require further validation through multicenter studies, longitudinal investigations, and international collaboration.
7. Conclusion
Neurovisual Medicine is concerned not only with whether individuals can see, but also with how the brain utilizes visual information to support cognition, learning, movement, behavior, and participation in everyday life.
As neuroscience, rehabilitation medicine, artificial intelligence, and digital health technologies continue to advance, Neurovisual Medicine has the potential to become an important component of future function-oriented and rehabilitation-oriented healthcare systems.
Vision-MDT advocates:
Vision as the entry point.
Function as the goal.
Collaboration as the pathway.
Evidence as the foundation.
Together, these principles support the development of integrated, patient-centered, and outcome-driven neurovisual care.
Vision-MDT Call to Action
The Vision-MDT Expert Panel calls upon clinicians, researchers, educators, rehabilitation professionals, healthcare institutions, and policymakers to:
- Recognize vision as a critical bridge between sensory systems and functional performance;
- Embrace functional improvement and participation as shared goals of healthcare and rehabilitation;
- Advance Neurovisual Medicine from conceptual exploration to clinical implementation;
- Promote the development of integrated, evidence-based, and collaborative neurovisual care systems.
From concept to practice.
From innovation to system-building.
From vision to participation.
Appendix：
- Vision-MDT: Overview of the Neurovisual Collaborative Care Framework
- Vision-MDT White Paper on Neurovisual Medicine
- Expert Consensus on the Neurovisual Medicine Collaborative Framework (2026)
- Expert Consensus on the Vision-MDT Model for Pediatric Neurovisual Rehabilitation (2026)
- Vision-MDT Interdisciplinary Clinical Workflow
- Clinical Warning Signs of Neurovisual Dysfunction (NVD)
- Vision-MDT Advancement Program