Your Child’s Vision

Early Development

Before birth, proper prenatal care and a nutritional diet will aid in the development of your baby’s eyes. Infants are born with an underdeveloped visual system. Your baby’s vision will grow and develop with him. It will start out in his first few weeks as blurry, shadowy and progress to performing complex visual tasks by school age. Toys, games and playtime activities that encourage visual development will help your child’s visual development. Early detection and treatment of eye disease and/or visual problems are essential for proper visual development.

Pediatric Eye Examination

Your baby’s doctor will examine his eyes for general eye health and visual acuity. At birth, your baby’s eyes should be examined for any congenital eye problems. Although these problems are rare, early diagnosis and treatment are important.

Around age three and again before entering school, you should schedule your child for a thorough eye examination. All doctors of optometry are equipped to examine children of this age and older.

School-age children should have periodic examination to screen for eye focusing and/or eye coordination problems that could affect their school performance. Exams are recommended every two years or more frequently if problems or risk factors exist.

School vision screenings and your child’s pediatric examinations are designed to detect possible visual problems but do not take the place of a thorough exam by an optometrist.

Symptoms that may indicate your child has a vision or visual processing problem:

  • Jerking, erratic eye movements or lack or fixation in infants
  • Avoiding activities that require near vision
  • Holding objects very close to the eyes or sitting close to the T.V.
  • Using a finger to follow along while reading
  • Turning or tilting the head or body when reading or performing tasks
  • Squinting, closing or covering one eye
  • Rubbing or blinking excessively
  • Headaches, nausea or dizziness
  • Redness or excessive tearing of the eyes
  • Sensitivity to light
  • Reversing words, letters or numbers when reading or writing
  • Confusing words with similar or same beginnings or endings
  • Omitting words or repeating or skipping lines when reading
  • Writing uphill or downhill or out of lines
  • Performing any tasks below potential

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TESTIMONIAL

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PENNY DANIELS
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