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Written By: John Fuda
2005-06-08 02:00:00
FORMER PRESIDENT CARTER AND AMERICAN OPTOMETRIC ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCE 
InfantSEE PROGRAM TO PROVIDE NO-COST INFANT EYE ASSESSMENTS
Survey Shows Mothers Unaware of Need for Early Evaluation of Infant Eye Health
NEW YORK (June 8, 2005)?InfantSEE, a no-cost public health program developed to provide professional eye care for infants nationwide, was launched today by the American Optometric Association (AOA), in partnership with The Vision Care Institute of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc. Under this program, supported by former President Jimmy Carter, who serves as honorary national chair and spokesman, participating optometrists will provide a one-time, comprehensive eye assessment to infants in their first year of life, offering early detection of potential eye and vision problems at no cost regardless of income.
Public health experts agree that visual development is most dramatic between 6 and 12 months of age and that early detection can prevent and help reduce the threat of serious vision impairments. In fact, one in every 10 children is at risk from undiagnosed eye and vision problems. However, a survey fielded by BabyCenter.com, on behalf of the AOA, reveals that nearly half of new and expectant mothers mistakenly believe that because a baby's eyes are changing and their vision is developing in their first year of life, it is best to wait until the child is older to get them screened by an eye care professional.
Further, while 97 percent of mothers said they do everything they can to ensure their children’s health, only 13 percent of mothers with children younger than 2 years of age said they had taken their babies to see an eye and vision care professional for a regular check-up or well-care visit. This discrepancy suggests a lack of understanding about the importance of early intervention. If left untreated, eye and vision problems can impact learning and may lead to permanent vision impairment.
"As parents, we regularly take our children to the dentist to help prevent cavities. Likewise, we should take our babies to the optometrist to help prevent potential eye and vision problems," said former President Carter. "Given my family's experience managing vision problems that were not caught early, I strongly encourage all parents with babies to visit an optometrist for an InfantSEE assessment during the first year of their child's life and I applaud AOA for providing parents this opportunity."
The BabyCenter.com survey also showed that the large majority of mothers feel confident that their pediatricians have the time and resources to identify potential eye and vision problems. Actually, a typical well-child visit to the pediatrician, including care and services performed by all personnel, lasts an average of 22.1 minutes, 1 which is effective for detecting only readily identifiable eye problems. Significant risk factors to eye and vision disorders, however, are typically not detectable by base-level infant eye screenings, and even early retinoblastoma (the seventh most common pediatric cancer) is detected more than 80 percent of the time by a family member or friend, as opposed to a health care professional. "Optometrists, through their clinical education, training and experience, have the means to provide the most effective primary eye and vision services to children, as a complement to routine well-care exams given by pediatricians," said Scott Jens, O.D., F.A.A.O. and InfantSEE chairman. "The AOA and InfantSEE volunteer optometrists look forward to working with pediatricians to offer expanded eye care to infants nationwide."
Although infants cannot respond verbally, the first year of life is an ideal time to conduct an extensive eye assessment. Not only is this a critical time for eye and vision development, but generally children at this age do not yet fear doctor visits and find the assessment painless and often enjoyable. Typically, infants sit on their parent's lap during the assessment, in which the optometrist uses lights and other hand held objects to check that their eyes are working together and that there are no significant refractive issues that will impede proper vision development. The optometrist may also use drops or a spray
to dilate the baby's pupils to ensure the health of the eye.
As part of the national launch, former President Carter will issue a call-to-action through a public service announcement (PSA), which will educate parents about InfantSEE and urge them to take advantage of the program. The PSA cites his personal experience regarding his grandchildren's eye problems. His granddaughter was diagnosed and treated as a toddler for Amblyopia, often referred to as Lazy eye, a leading cause of vision loss in people younger than 45, which will affect one in 30 children. His grandson's amblyopia was not identified until grade school and may never be fully corrected.
To learn more about InfantSEE, call toll-free (888) 396-EYES (3937) or visit www.infantsee.org.
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Read More About Former Pres Carter And AOA Announce InfantSEE Program To Provide No-Cost Infant Eye Assessment...
Written By: John Fuda
2005-11-10 07:07:43
By Glen Steele, optometrist, from: http://parentcenter.babycenter.com/expert/preschooler/phealth/pvision/70165.html
How can I tell whether my child needs glasses?
Answer: You can look for a couple of signs. Does your child move up close to see things? Does he have an eye that turns in toward his nose or out toward his ear? If so, he may need glasses. (Occasionally these are signs of a problem that requires Vision Therapy or corrective surgery.) Also, a child who needs glasses may not respond to visual stimuli in normal ways. For example, he may not look up when someone enters a room, or he may fail to focus on the pages of a book while you're reading to him. When children do need glasses, they're more likely to be farsighted than nearsighted, but vision problems are rare at this age. If your child rubs his eyes a lot, it's more likely to be because of allergies than a vision problem. If you're concerned about your child's vision, make an appointment with an optometrist. Some private practices are particularly geared to working with children. Also, optometry clinics at colleges of optometry have doctors who specialize in children's vision.
Glen Steele O.D., is a clinical professor and chief of the pediatric and vision therapy service at the Southern College of Optometry in Memphis, Tennessee. In his private practice he primarily treats infants and young children. He is a past president of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development and the current president of the Optometric Extension Program Foundation, as well as a member of the pediatric and binocular vision committee of the American Optometric Association. Dr. Steele was selected as Tennessee's Optometrist of the Year in 1999 and was selected one of Optometric Management's Top Ten Optometrists of the Decade in 1999. He is the chair of Operation Bright Start in Tennessee, a program to emphasize the need for eye and vision care in infants.
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Written By: John Fuda
2006-06-22 02:00:00
FORMER PRESIDENT CARTER AND AMERICAN OPTOMETRIC ASSOCIATION CELEBRATE INFANTSEE™ ’s FIRST BIRTHDAY BY ANNOUNCING RESULTS OF THE PROGRAM’S SUCCESS
Assessments Show that 1 in 20 Babies Have Risk for Abnormal Prescription Status
LAS VEGAS (June 22, 2006) – Assessment results from the first year of InfantSEE™, a no-cost public health program developed to provide professional eye care for infants nationwide, show that 1 in 20 babies were found to be at risk for an abnormal prescription status, reaffirming the need for this valuable program. Further, optometrists found overall need for concern in one out of 14 infants. During InfantSEE™’s first year, nearly 50,000 infants have been served by the program, and the AOA has analyzed 10 percent of the results (5,000 cases). Results are being presented by the American Optometric Association (AOA), in partnership with The Vision Care Institute of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc. at AOA’s annual meeting in Las Vegas.
Under this program, supported by former President Jimmy Carter, honorary national chair and spokesman, participating optometrists provide a one-time, comprehensive eye assessment to infants in their first year of life, offering early detection of potential eye and vision problems at no cost, regardless of income.
“As parents, we regularly take our children to the dentist to help prevent cavities. Likewise, we should take our babies to the optometrist to help prevent potential eye and vision problems,” said former President Carter. “Given my family’s experience managing vision problems that were not caught early, I strongly encourage all parents with babies to visit an optometrist for an InfantSEE assessment during the first year of their child’s life and I applaud AOA for providing parents this opportunity.”
Public health experts agree that visual development is most dramatic between 6 and 12 months of age and that early detection can prevent and help reduce the threat of serious vision impairments. In fact, one in every 10 children is at risk from undiagnosed eye and vision problems.
“Optometrists, through their clinical education, training and experience, have the means to provide the most effective primary eye and vision services to children, as a complement to routine well-care exams given by pediatricians,” said Scott Jens, O.D., F.A.A.O. and InfantSEE chairman. “The AOA and InfantSEE volunteer optometrists are proud to continue offering this service to parents and their infants.”
Although infants cannot respond verbally, the first year of life is an ideal time to conduct an extensive eye assessment. Not only is this a critical time for eye and vision development, but generally children at this age do not yet fear doctor visits and find the assessment painless and often enjoyable. Typically, infants sit on their parent’s lap during the assessment, in which the optometrist uses lights and other hand held objects to check that their eyes are working together and that there are no significant refractive issues that will impede proper vision development. To learn more about InfantSEE™, call toll-free (888) 396-EYES (396-3937) or visit www.infantsee.org.
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Read More About InfantSEE Is 1 Year Old!...
Written By: John Fuda
2005-11-10 07:28:33
What happens during an Eye Exam at a well-baby visit, and how can I tell whether the doctor is doing a thorough job?
By the BabyCenter editorial staff, from: http://www.babycenter.com/refcap/baby/babydevelopment/1437477.html
At all well-baby visits, your child's doctor should check the structure and alignment of your baby's eyes, his ability to move them correctly, and for signs of congenital eye conditions or other problems. Here's what to watch for to make sure the doctor's doing a thorough job:
? Your baby's family eye history is noted.
? Using a penlight, the doctor examines the outside of your baby's eyes, including the eyelids and the eyeball. She checks to see that the pupils are the same size and that the lids don't droop. She looks for discharge and other signs of infection, allergy, disease, or blocked tear ducts. She looks at the position of your baby's eyes, lids, and lashes.
? The doctor checks your baby's eye movement by watching his ability to fix on an object (like a toy) and follow it as she moves it into different positions. She'll do this with each eye, and with both eyes together.
? The doctor watches how your baby responds to an object with each eye. If both eyes don't respond equally, or if your baby has a strong preference for one eye, it could signal a problem.
? The doctor observes how your baby's eyes react to changes in light. In a darkened room (to make the eyes dilate), she'll use a lighted instrument called an ophthalmoscope to look for a red reflex in each eye and in both eyes at once. An abnormal reaction to light could be a red flag for eye problems like cataracts (clouding of the lens of the eye) or tumors.
Most doctors are trained to screen children for eye problems, but some are more comfortable (and better trained at) examining eyes than others. A good pediatrician or family doctor will refer you to a specialist if she thinks she's unable to adequately screen or if she notices a potential problem.
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Written By: John Fuda
2005-11-10 07:13:53
What is strabismus?
By the BabyCenter editorial staff, from: http://www.babycenter.com/refcap/baby/babyills/babyeyes/10890.html
If your baby's eyes seem to point in different directions or not focus on the same object, he may have strabismus ? a lack of coordination between the eyes. They may appear to be "crossed" or one may seem to drift inward, outward, or upward. Strabismus can be constant (meaning the eyes are always crossed or misaligned) or intermittent (meaning it happens now and then). If your baby has strabismus and it isn't treated, his brain could start ignoring the input from one of his eyes, eventually causing the vision in the ignored eye to deteriorate. This condition is known as Amblyopia or "Lazy eye" (see below). Depth perception could also be damaged.
What causes it?
Sometimes strabismus is present at birth. The condition seems to run in families, but can also show up in children with no family history ? and when that's the case, it sometimes indicates a more significant vision problem. Those who are farsighted also seem to be at higher risk.
What can be done to treat strabismus?
Strabismus that's a result of farsightedness can usually be corrected with glasses, especially if caught early. Strabismus that persists even when a child wears glasses may require surgical correction. While the lack of coordination between the eyes centers in the brain, it's not possible to operate on the brain to change the alignment of the eyes. Instead, doctors operate on the eye muscles, which are accessible. That's one reason that the surgery isn't 100 percent successful.
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