Most of a child’s learning is done through their eyes so there is a clear link with how well a child can see and how well they may develop either academically, socially or athletically.
Vision doesn’t just happen. In fact, when a child is born, they don’t know how to see. A child’s brain learns how to use eyes to see, just like it learns how to use legs to walk or a mouth to form words.
Vision develops from birth, right through until the age of eight. This is known as the ‘critical period’ because if a vision deficit is corrected during this time, the eye to brain pathway is still able to adapt and allow quality vision. It is crucial during this time that the two eyes see equally in order for them to learn to work together. This allows the child to develop good binocular or 3D vision.
Unfortunately, the longer a vision problem goes untreated, the more a child’s brain learns to accommodate that problem. For example, if one eye has blurred vision, this eye will become amblyopic or lazy- this means it will never see as well as the other eye regardless of glasses, contact lenses or surgery in their later years.
The good news is that the majority of vision impairment in school age children is due to them simply needing a pair of glasses to correct a defocus of one or both eyes.
Preschool kiwi kids receive a free vision screening as part of their 4 year old B4 School Check (B4SC). This entails checking distance vision and comparing the results to an expected normal level. This can be particularly useful in detecting myopia or short-sight. However, it has been postulated for some time, that kids with hyperopia or long-sight may well go undetected. Long-sighted children can often compensate for their refractive error by focusing hard to achieve clear vision, however, this can result in reduced comfort and performance with near tasks.
The recent Welcome to School (WTS) was employed in Auckland to test the efficacy of the B4SC to detect refractive error and visual impairment by following a group of 6-7 year old children.
Results showed the B4SC was effective at detecting all children with amblyopic risk factors, ( for example, one eye having reduced vision), however, the vision screening was shown to be ineffective at detecting significant refractive error with nearly 60% of kids in this category passing the screening! Furthermore, having passed the test, none of these children had visited an optometrist for an eye exam and therefore, they were not wearing glasses to correct their focusing error.
As an optometrist, I understand that children with uncorrected vision conditions or eye health problems face many barriers in life. High quality eye care can break down these barriers and help enable our children to reach their highest potential. For this reason it is never too early to have their vision and eyes assessed. In fact, the New Zealand Association of Optometrists recommends that children have their eyes examined:
• At 6 to 12 months old
• At 2 to 3 years of age
• Before starting school
• Through their school years as indicated by vision screening, school performance or as recommended by your GP or optometrist.
It is particularly important for children to be tested at a young age if either of his/her parents required glasses as a child or teenager.
An eye exam is tailored to your child and their age and most kids really enjoy it – parents often comment they are surprised at how well their child has managed all the different vision checks.
If you have any queries regarding your child’s vision don’t hesitate to contact me through our website or Facebook page. Or simply contact us to arrange an appointment.
