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Written By: John Fuda
2007-06-04 02:08:09
Parents should be aware of signals of poor vision. If one eye turns or crosses, that eye may not see as well as the other eye. If the child is uninterested in faces or age-appropriate toys, or if the eyes rove around or jiggle (
nystagmus), poor vision should be suspected. Other signs to watch for are tilting the head and squinting. Babies and toddlers compensate for poor vision rather than complain about it.Should a baby need
glasses, the prescription can be determined fairly accurately by dilating the pupil and analyzing the light reflected through the pupil from the back of the eye.A baby's vision can also be tested in a research laboratory where brain waves are recorded as the child looks at stripes or checks on a TV screen. The test is called Visual Evoked Potential (VEP). Another test called preferential looking or Teller Acuity Cards uses simple striped cards to attract the child's attention. In both tests, as the stripes grow smaller, the child eventually does not respond (with brain waves or by looking at the stripes).
Eyecare Associates of East Texas
http://www.eyecaretyler.com/pediatrics.htm
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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
2005-11-18 00:00:00
Great News! Since
InfantSEE launched in June 2005, over 4,000 infants' eyes and vision has been assessed. The InfantSEE newsletter keeps the topic of infants' vision and eye health front of mind for parents, teachers, and others concerned about the general wellness of infants and children.Note to Parents: if your child has already received an InfantSEE assessment, we encourage you to share this newsletter with others who may not have heard about the program yet. If your child hasn't yet received an InfantSEE assessment, click here to find an InfantSEE provider in your area.
Note to Educators: please share this information with the parents of your students and others in the community.
The InfantSEE program is grateful for the word-of-mouth recommendations of individuals like you. Thank you for spreading the word about the importance of early detection of eye and vision problems. InfantSEE participating doctors provide a one-time comprehensive eye and vision assessment to infants in the first year of life at no cost.
As They Grow: Developmental Milestones for Infants' and Children's Vision
In addition to the actual eye and vision assessments provided through the InfantSEE program, optometrists educate parents and the public about infants' and children's vision in general. An important fact that is not widely known is that vision is LEARNED. Provided below are milestones of a child's visual development.
- Before birth: Proper prenatal care and nutrition can help Baby's eyes and associated nervous system to develop.
- At birth: Baby's eyes should be examined for signs of congenital eye problems. While these are rare, early diagnosis and treatment are important to Baby's development.
- Two months: for the first six to eight weeks of life, it is normal for Baby's eyes to not always track together. This should not be a concern unless Baby’s eyes are never aligned or their alignment does not gradually improve. Tearing is normal for many infants because the tear drainage ducts have not opened. They usually open on their own, but the doctor should be informed and he or she will suggest what to do to stimulate the opening of the ducts.
- Four months: Baby should begin to follow moving objects with the eyes and reach for things, first by chance and later more accurately, as eye-hand coordination and depth perception begin to develop.
- Six months: Baby should receive first comprehensive eye assessment. Click here to find an InfantSEEâ„¢ provider in your area. The optometrist will test for excessive or unequal amounts of nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism and assess the quality of eye movement ability as well as all aspects of eye health.
- Between four and eight months: Baby should begin to turn from side to side and use his/her arms and legs. Eye movement and eye/body coordination skills continue to develop, and both eyes should focus equally.
- From eight to twelve months: Baby is mobile now, crawling and pulling up. Baby is using both eyes together and judging distances; grasping and throwing objects with greater precision. Crawling is important for developing eye-hand-foot-body coordination.
- From one to two years: Baby's eye-hand coordination and depth perception continue to develop, and Baby begins to understand abstract terms.
- Age three: Child should have a comprehensive Eye Examination to make sure vision is continuing to develop properly and there is no evidence of eye disease. If needed, your optometrist can prescribe treatment including glasses and/or Vision Therapy to correct a vision problem.
- Preschool years: Child develops visually-guided eye-hand-body coordination, fine motor skills and the visual motor skills necessary to learn to read. Parents should watch for signs that may indicate a vision development problem: short attention span relative to Child's age; difficulty with eye-hand-body coordination in ball play and bike riding; avoidance of coloring and puzzles and other detailed activities.
Coming up in the next issue:
Glossary of children's vision terms
InfantSEE brochures available for local groups
Conversation with an InfantSEE participating doctor
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Written By: John Fuda
2005-06-24 02:00:00
SURGEON GENERAL MEETS WITH OPTOMETRY ON IMPACT OF INFANTSEE™, A NEW PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM OFFERING NO-COST INFANT EYE ASSESSMENTS NATIONWIDE
Contact: Susan Thomas or Heather Hinckley
American Optometric Association MS&L
(314) 991-4100 x263 (212) 468-3725
SLThomas@aoa.org
Heather.Hinckley@mslpr.com
ROCKVILLE, MD (June 24, 2005) –A delegation from the American Optometric Association met last Friday with U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona, M.D., M.P.H, America’s chief health educator, to provide a detailed briefing on InfantSEE™, a new public health program aimed at the earliest possible diagnosis of a potential eye and vision problems in children through a no-cost assessment by an optometrist, and an update on the impact of the initiative since its nationwide launch two weeks ago. The InfantSEE™ program involves the voluntary efforts and donated expertise of thousands of participating Doctors of Optometry in all 50 states. President Jimmy Carter is the Honorary Chairman of InfantSEE™ and is serving as the national spokesmen.
“I commend the American Optometric Association for their efforts to improve the health and well being of all Americans, and I look forward to partnering with AOA to advance the 2005 agenda of the Office of the Surgeon General: ‘The Year of the Healthy Child,’” said Dr. Carmona. “I particularly want to thank the nearly 7,000 optometrists nationwide who are participating in InfantSEE™ for all they are doing to provide much-needed eye care services to America’s children.”
“President Bush and Dr. Carmona have demonstrated consistent leadership on children’s health concerns. Optometry is proud to be working closely with this administration, at the highest levels, to ensure that no child will be plagued by a preventable eye or vision problem,” said Peter Kehoe, O.D. “Friday’s meeting in the Surgeon General’s office makes it clear that optometrists, through the InfantSEE™ initiative and the primary eye care we’re delivering in communities across America, are committed to ensuring that 2005 and every year to follow will be the year of the healthy child.”
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, who serves as honorary national chair and spokesman for InfantSEE™, issued 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.
About the American Optometric Association
American Optometric Association doctors of optometry are highly qualified, trained doctors, on the frontline of eye health and vision care, who examine, diagnose, treat and manage diseases and disorders of the eye. In addition to providing eye and vision care, optometrists play a major role in an individual's overall health and well being by detecting systemic diseases. Doctors of optometry have the skills and training to provide more than two-thirds of all primary eye care in the United States. The American Optometric Association represents more than 34,000 doctors of optometry, optometry students and paraoptometric assistants and technicians in nearly 6,500 communities across the country. For more information, visit www.aoa.org.
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Written By: John Fuda
2007-06-04 09:24:20
visual acuity (sharpness of vision) is approximately 20/400. This is equivalent to seeing only the big letter “E” on an eye chart. Vision slowly improves to 20/20 by age 2 years. Color vision is present at birth.Newborns at first don’t pay much attention to the visual world but normally will blink when light shines in their eye. By 6 to 8 weeks of age, infants will fix their gaze on an object and follow its movement.
A baby’s eyes should be well aligned (working as a team) by 4 months of age. As the eyes become aligned, three-dimensional vision develops.
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