$Unique_ID{PAR00179}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{Medical Advice:  Vision Problems}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{
Editors of Consumer Guide
Chasnoff, Ira J}
$Subject{Vision Problems Tilting cocking head Looking corner eye Squint
Squinting Crossed eyes cross eyed light Sensitivity Headache Headaches reading
School examined books television screen myopia nearsighted nearsightedness
hyperopia farsighted farsightedness amblyopia ex anopsia lazy eye astigmatism
astigmatisms focus light rays blurred cross squints sensitive bright lights
Snellen eyechart checkup ophthalmoscope ophthalmoscopes ophthalmologist
ophthalmologists}
$Log{}

Your Child:  A Medical Guide


Vision Problems


     Quick Reference

     SYMPTOMS
     - Tilting or cocking of the head
     - Looking out of the corner of the eye
     - Squinting
     - Crossed eyes
     - Sensitivity to light
     - Headaches
     - Dislike of reading
     - School problems

     HOME CARE
     - Have your child's eyes examined regularly, and be aware of the symptoms
       that might suggest that the child has a vision problem.

     PRECAUTIONS
     - A child's vision should be checked annually from the age of four years
       or younger.
     - If your child holds books very close to his eyes when reading or cannot
       see the television screen from a distance, have his eyes checked.


     By the age of four or five years, 5 to 10 percent of all children have a
problem with vision.  By the end of adolescence, that figure has climbed to 30
percent.
     The vision problems that occur most often among children and adolescents
are myopia (nearsightedness, or the inability to see distant objects clearly),
hyperopia (farsightedness, or the inability to see near objects clearly),
amblyopia ex anopsia ("lazy eye," or loss of vision from lack of use), and
astigmatism (a defect in the ability to focus light rays, which causes blurred
vision at all distances).  Nearsightedness is hereditary; it is rarely present
at birth but develops as the child grows.  Lazy eye develops during the first
six or seven years of life.  Farsightedness and astigmatism occur at an early
age and usually do not grow worse with time.

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS

     At birth, a baby who has normal eyes can focus on an object and visually
follow movement.  If an infant's eyes seem to make random, searching
movements, he may have defective vision.
     Beyond infancy, there are several symptoms that may indicate poor vision.
If your child habitually tilts his head or looks out of the corners of his
eyes, if the eyes cross, or if the child squints or is excessively sensitive
to bright lights, there could be a vision problem.  Holding objects close to
examine them, failing to recognize familiar people at a distance, suffering
headaches after use of the eyes, having problems in school, and disliking
reading may also signify poor vision.
     Vision can be tested at different ages in a variety of ways.  During the
first week of life, an infant should be able to fix his eyes on a bright
light.  By two months of age, the child's eyes should follow that light as it
moves through a 180-degree arc.  By seven or eight months, the child should be
able to recognize and respond to facial expressions.  After age three, a
child's eyes can be tested by having him focus on charts that use pictures or
the letter E pointed in different directions.  Finally, around the age of five
or six years, the child's eyes can be tested using a standard Snellen eye
chart (a chart of rows of letters in diminishing sizes).

HOME CARE

     Be alert to the symptoms that can indicate impaired vision, and have the
child's eyes examined periodically.

PRECAUTIONS

  -  A child who cannot see the television screen from a distance or who holds
     books close to the eyes may be nearsighted.
  -  A child's vision should be checked annually, beginning no later than the
     age of four years.

MEDICAL TREATMENT

     At each annual eye checkup, your doctor will examine your child's eyes
inside and out with an instrument called an ophthalmoscope and will test the
child's vision with an eye chart.  If an abnormality is suspected, your doctor
will refer you to an ophthalmologist (an eye specialist) for more detailed
examination and correction of the problem.

RELATED TOPICS:  Crossed eyes; Lazy eye