Eye Exams are a Crucial Part of a Child’s Development
One of the best parts of being a kid is getting to experience the world around you. If your child is struggling with eye sight, it could limit their ability to learn and grow; especially because roughly 80% of kids’ school experience is visual. The best way to catch and address vision problems in your child is through regular eye exams. Contact us to set up an eye exam appointment for your child today.
How Often Should Your Child Have an Eye Exam?
You should bring your child in for their first eye exam at about 6 months old. After that, it’s best to have their eyes examined at age 3, and then again just before kindergarten (age 5 or 6). Once your kids hit school age, they should see an optometrist every two years, or as often as your optometrist recommends.
What Our Kids’ Eye Exams Look Like At Our Cary Office
We pride ourselves in offering engaging and comprehensive children’s eye exams. Our staff make a point of putting your children at ease and making the process fun for them. Kids love to learn, so we take the opportunity to teach your child about the structure and function of the human eye while we conduct the examination.
Testing What Your Child Sees
We’ll test acuity, functionality, and overall health, keeping an eye out for any indication of disease. It’s also a good opportunity to make sure their prescription hasn’t changed. From there, we’ll go over your child’s results with you, answer your questions, and talk about any necessary treatment options.
Common Vision Problems in Kids
Myopia
Nearsightedness, or Myopia develops in about one third of children as they grow. Most commonly, children are prescribed glasses to control the progression of myopia. However, there’s also a treatment called orthokeratology which involves wearing rigid contact lenses overnight to gently reshape the cornea. In the morning, the lenses are taken out, and the child can carry on with their day, correction-free.
Strabismus
Strabismus is a misalignment of the eyes. When someone appears “cross-eyed”, it’s typically due to neurological or anatomical issues preventing the eye muscles on both sides from working in sync. This kind of misalignment usually causes shaky or double vision. To combat this, the brain often starts ignoring signals from one eye, resulting in a “lazy eye”, or amblyopia.
Amblyopia
Amblyopia usually starts in infancy or early childhood. Although it usually only affects one eye, it can cause reduced acuity in both. With early detection and treatment, amblyopia can be resolved without reduced vision. That said, the problem will not resolve on its own. Without vision therapy, the condition will worsen, and can result in legal blindness in one eye.