March 31, 2020

A parent should schedule regular appointments for his or her child with an eye care professional, such as an optometrist. Optometrists have advanced eye care training and proper clinical tools. They can perform a thorough evaluation of a child’s vision and eye health better than the average pediatrician.

 

Why Should Children Go Through Eye Examinations?

For a child to develop in a way that he or she can experience success in school and life in general, he or she needs to have a good vision. Vision develops with age, and it is important to ensure that a child’s vision is developing normally. If your child’s eyes do not send clear images to the brain, he or she will experience limitations that may be difficult to correct later in life. Yet, early detection and treatment will always cut such limitations.
 

Children need to have healthy eyes so they can:

• Determine distances with accuracy.

• Experience comfortable and accurate eye teaming.

• Move their eyes with ease.

• Focus on objects near or far with ease.
  
   

Effects of Poor Eye Health Among Children

Children with eye problems might never know that they have a problem until they go through a comprehensive eye examination. Your child may be experiencing delays in development and perform poorly in school because of an eye problem. He or she may even develop low self-esteem because his or her eyes are not working properly.
 

The American Optometric Association states that 80 percent of all the learning children experience occurs through the eyes. So, a child with undetected eye problems will have challenges in reading, writing, and playing sports in school.

 

Identifying a Problem With the Eyes

The sooner you can have his or her eyes checked, the sooner your child can start to experience a normal childhood and reach toward his or her potential. Most of the problems that children develop have a relationship with vision, the appearance of the eye, or the coordination of the eyes. Common pediatric eye problems include amblyopia (lazy eye), astigmatism (blurriness), and myopia (nearsightedness). Pediatric cataracts, childhood tearing, and cortical visual impairment among others are further problems.

 

Determining the Course of Treatment

The eye care professional will identify and prescribe the right course of treatment. When the eyecare specialist establishes the problem that your child’s eyes may be having, he or she will prescribe treatment. The most common treatments include prescribing glasses, contact lenses, and eye surgery. Stimulating neurological pathways and eye drops among others are further treatment courses.

 

Monitoring Changes and Improving Vision

The eye care professionals will need to track the progress. This is possible only in follow-up appointments. The American Optometric Association recommends annual comprehensive eye and vision examinations for all children. These examinations will help eye care professionals to optimize eye health and vision care. They will also catch vision problems that may arise.


 

To get more information on routine pediatric eye exams or eye care, contact our professionals at Modern iCare Optometry. Visit us in our Palm Desert office in California. To book an appointment, call us at 760-674-7272. Your eye health is our top priority.