My child is not complaining about their vision and is getting good grades, do they still need an eye exam?

Yes! Vision issues often come on gradually, so much so that they become a part of the child’s new normal. Exceptionally academically gifted children may also have vision problems that are masked by their good or great grades.

My child passed his/her school screening, do they still need to get a comprehensive exam?

Yes! While we love the fact that many schools now do screenings, they are just that… quick screenings often done in a gym or auditorium. Most screenings do not check acuity past 20/40 (which is a little ways from 20/20), check binoculairity (how well the eyes work together), eye health, or check eye movement skills such as pursuits or saccades (important eye movement visual skills that are important for reading, sports, and even overall confidence).

Can glasses make my child’s vision worse?

The short answer is not only, but studies have shown quite the opposite- that not correcting myopia (or nearsightedness) causes the eye to try to compensate for the blur/defocus it is experiencing by actually growing longer, and thus increasing in nearsightedness as well as risk of retinal detachment, decreased best corrected visual acuity, and cataracts later in life. Now, in *certain* cases if the child is hyperopic, or farsighted, (usually in small amounts), overzealous/unnecessary prescribing has the potential to to increase the farsightedness so we would want to avoid that, especially if the child is able to compensate for their farsightedness (unlike myopes hyperopes can often “flex” the lens inside their eye up to a certain age to compensate all or some of their Rx!), so we would want to cut down or in certain cases even withhold the prescription if the child is able to compensate for it.

What are common signs/symptoms that my child might have an issue with their vision?

• Squinting Or Pulling at Corners of Eyes

• Headaches

• Disliking and/or trying to rush through homework

• Difficulty Paying Attention

• Covering One Eye

• Sitting very close to the TV

What does a new patient comprehensive pediatric eye exam consist of/check for?

-Eye Health

-Vision

-Eye Movements (Pursuits and Saccades- also know as “tracking” and “fast jump” eye movements-very important for reading and sports)

-Eye Alignment

-3D Vision

-Color Vision

How often should my child get their eyes checked?

We recommend annual eye exams for most children. Occasionally, a child’s eyes will change so fast that in addition to an annual eye exam they may need a mid year check. If this is happening, we will likely recommend myopia progression contact lenses which Dr. Dembinska has attended additional education for prescribing these lenses.

Please feel free to to email us at info@alleyesoptometry.com if you have any questions