Vision Screening for Children
When
you think of kids, you don't tend to think of vision problems,
but little eyes can have big problems and it's important to
detect them early.
One
hundred and sixty million Americans wear glasses, many of
whom are children. Kids need vision screening a lot earlier
than you may think.
Mahmoud
Allami, 9, is one of many students at Dearborn Academy who
took our "7 Saves Your Sight" vision test Wednesday. As a
child, two eyes were different. One far-sighted, the other
was not.
"I
had lazy eye, and I had to wear a patch," he says.
"You take the good eye and close it completely with a patch
so no light gets in, so the child is forced to use the bad
eye," Dr. Frederick Jardon, an ophthalmologist at Providence
Hospital, said. "Then the bad eye starts being used, and the
brain learns how to see with it."
Danny
Jaumaa has a history of eye problems in his family. He started
wearing glasses two years ago.
"I
couldn't read from the back, because I sit like a little bit
in the front, and I can't see good," he says.
You
can see why it's important at this age to have young eyes
screened for sight problems. Ophthalmologists say it's best
to begin screening as early as age three, so doctors can detect
lazy eye and correct it.
"You
can patch for maybe months versus if you catch it at this
age, at age six or seven, where you may have to patch six
months to a year, and may even lose what you gain after you
stop," Dr. Jardon says.
Danny's
parents caught his lazy eye early. Even Mahmoud, with a history
of lazy left eye, which was corrected with patching and glasses,
did perfect on his test.
The
test is more suited for adults, but if you have a history
of eye problems in your family, children should be seen as
soon as possible, Dr. Jardon says.
If
you have small children, make sure their eyes are screened
by a pediatrician by age three and an ophthalmologist if there
is a history of eye disease.
