Pediatric Eye Care
According to experts, 80% of learning is visual, which means that if your child is having difficulty seeing clearly, his or her learning can be affected.
This also goes for infants who develop and learn about the world around them through their sense of sight. To ensure that your children have the visual resources they need to grow and develop normally, their eyes and vision should be checked by an eye doctor at certain stages of their development.
When Should Your Child's Eyes be Examined?
Children should have their eyes examined by an eye doctor at 6 months, 3 years, at the start of school, and then at least every 2 years following. If there are any signs that there may be a vision problem or if the child has certain risk factors (such as developmental delays, premature birth, crossed or lazy eyes, family history, or previous injuries) more frequent exams are recommended.
A child that wears eyeglasses or contact lenses should have his or her eyes examined yearly. Children’s eyes can change rapidly as they grow. At Silicon Valley Eye Physicians, we provide pediatric eye exams for children from Sunnyvale, Los Altos, Mountain View, Cupertino and the surrounding areas.
Myopia Vision Simulator
If you have perfect vision, or after going through Lasik have forgotten what it’s like to have myopia, here’s a myopia simulator to help you understand a little bit about what a child with nearsightedness sees in the classroom.
Eye Exams in School-Aged Children: Ages 6-18
Undetected or uncorrected vision problems can cause children and teens to suffer academically, socially, athletically, and personally. If your child is having trouble in school or afterschool activities there could be an underlying vision problem. Proper learning, motor development, reading, and many other skills are dependent upon not only good vision but also the ability of your eyes to work together. Children that have problems with focusing, reading, teaming their eyes, or hand-eye coordination will often experience frustration and may exhibit behavioral problems as well. Often they don’t know that the vision they are experiencing is abnormal, so they aren’t able to express that they need help.
In addition to the symptoms written above, signs of vision problems in older children include; Short attention span, Headaches, Frequent blinking, Avoiding reading, Tilting the head to one side, Losing their place often while reading, Double vision, and Poor reading comprehension.
Children's Eye Exams Near Mountain View
In addition to basic visual acuity (distance and near vision) an eye exam may assess the following visual skills that are required for learning and mobility:
- Binocular vision: how the eyes work together as a team
- Focusing
- Peripheral Vision
- Color Vision
- Hand-eye Coordination
- Tracking
The optometrist in Silicon Valley Eye Physicians will also examine the area around the eye and inside the eye to check for any eye diseases or health conditions. You should tell the doctor any relevant personal history of your children such as premature birth, developmental delays, family history of eye problems, eye injuries, or medications the child is taking. This would also be the time to address any concerns or issues your child has that might indicate a vision problem.
If the eye doctor does determine that your child has a vision problem, they may discuss a number of therapeutic options depending on the condition. Since some conditions are much easier to treat when they are caught early while the eyes are still developing, it is important to diagnose any eye and vision issues as early as possible.
Following the guidelines for children’s eye exams and staying alert to any signs of vision problems can help your child to reach his or her potential.
