October is Children’s Vision Month

10/21/2016

October is Children’s Vision Month

When it comes to vision two misconceptions parents often have are that they would know if something was wrong with their child’s vision and that children can not have eye exams until they know their alphabet.

The truth is most children with vision issues do not complain of anything being wrong. Children only know the world through their eyesight; and whether their vision is clear or blurry they think how they are seeing is normal. Parents sometimes believe that if their child can point out fine details – like a plane in the sky – their child must have good vision. It is important to remember that just because a child can see something small it does not guarantee that both eyes are being used together. Children can have one eye that is doing all the work and one eye that is blurry. Again, these children with poor vision in one eye rarely complain that something is wrong.

So, when should children first have their eyes assessed by an optometrist to ensure everything is okay?

Parents are often shocked to find out that the Canadian Association of Optometrists recommends children have their first eye exam between six to nine months of age. Parents often ask me how I will be able to assess if their baby can see without their baby being able to tell me if ‘number one or two is clearer’. Pediatric eye exams are performed quite different than adult eye exams. For children under the age of five specialized lights can be used to assess eye alignment, if glasses are required, and assess the health of the eyes without any feedback from the child.

Assessing Eye Alignment

Eye turns – also known as strabismus – can be very difficult for untrained individuals to detect, especially if the eye turn is small. Approximately 5% of children have an eye turn and if an eye turn is not diagnosed and treated it can lead to amblyopia. Amblyopia is when an eye does not develop properly and does not learn to see. Sometimes amblyopia can have career implications in the future. Some professions, such as RCMP or city police, do not accept applicants with certain degrees of amblyopia.

Assessing the Need for Glasses

A retinoscope is a small handheld device that is used during pediatric eye exams to tell if a baby is nearsighted, farsighted, or has astigmatism. Babies should be farsighted and in fact being farsighted is often an indicator that a child will not need glasses as they grow older. If a baby is nearsighted, has a large amount of astigmatism, or is extremely farsighted glasses may be required at a young age to prevent amblyopia.

Assessing Eye Health

Thankfully only a small number of children have serious diseases associated with their eyes. Although uncommon, babies can have cataracts, glaucoma, and even cancers of the eye. A pediatric eye exam allows for proper assessment of a child’s eyes to ensure all the tissue is healthy and disease free.

If everything looks good at an initial eye exam children should have their eyes checked again between two to five years of age and then yearly while in school. As children grow and develop their eyes do as well. To excel in school children not only need to be able to see 20/20, but they also need to be able to use their eyes together as a team. Approximately 20% of children have a lack of coordination between their eyes, which can put a lot of stress and strain on learning. These children are often diagnosed with learning disabilities and perform below grade level due to lack of attention and distractibility. These children also often pass school vision screenings, which means they might go through years of school with an undiagnosed vision issue if they have never had a comprehensive eye exam with an optometrist. Approximately 43% of children with vision problems pass school vision screenings.

In Saskatchewan there is no cost to parents to have their child’s eyes tested by an optometrist. Children with a valid Saskatchewan health card receive one free eye exam a year until the age of eighteen.

Dr. Kaitlyn Elash is the owner of Optic Eye Clinic, which is a full-scope optometry clinic located in downtown Saskatoon. She was born and raised in Saskatoon and is happy to be home providing eye care to the community. Dr. Elash finished a three-year Bachelor of Science degree in anatomy and cell biology from the University of Saskatchewan before obtaining her Doctor of Optometry degree from the University of Waterloo in 2014. Among other recognitions during her training, Dr. Elash was the recipient of two general proficiency awards for academic achievement.

Dr. Elash is passionate about pediatric eye exams and in an effort to raise awareness she has been volunteering with Mommy Connections since 2015 to educate new parents on the importance of early eye exams. She provides routine eye care to patients as young as six months out of her clinic.

If you have further questions Dr. Elash can be reached at:

Optic Eye Clinic

306-664-2010

info@opticeyeclinic.com

www.opticeyeclinic.com