Pediatrics and Amblyopia Services
Vision problems in kids
One in four children has a vision problem that affects learning — a vision problem can sometimes be misinterpreted as or coincide with disinterest, headaches, sleepiness, dyslexia or ADHD. Eyesight (the ability to receive input through the eye) is not the same as vision (the ability to efficiently and accurately process and understand what that input is). Recognizing this distinction has monumental implications. Even a child with 20/20 eyesight can have a vision issue at the core of their learning problem. Being able to see the eye chart is just one of 17 different visual skills necessary for comfortable reading and learning.
Pediatric Eye Examinations
It is imperative to have a comprehensive eye exam for our pediatric population. Vision is crucial for learning and playing sports and it is so important to make sure that not only the eyes see clearly, but that they see comfortably and efficiently so that vision is not a barrier to learning and living. We offer comprehensive pediatric eye examinations for kids of any age with or without a history of brain injury. Our exam lane is completely wheel chair friendly so every kid has access to a comprehensive eye exam.
Types of Services
Comprehensive Eye Evaluation
Every pediatric patient needs a comprehensive, dilated eye exam to evaluate for any abnormalities like amblyopia (lazy eye) and screening of the oculomotor system to ensure overall normal binocular vision. Kids have very strong eye focusing muscles so it is important to have a dilated eye examination with cycloplegic eye drops to rule out hidden refractive error. Kids should be able to see 20/20 at distance and near by the age of 3-5. The eyes need to be healthy and corrected for any abnormal amounts of refractive error (nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism) to give the brain the best signal to ensure proper visual development
Binocular Vision Examination
Binocular vision is the ability for both eyes to focus, coordinate, and track together efficiently. Underlying binocular vision disorders like accommodative insufficiency and convergence insufficiency are common in up to 30% of the pediatric population and can go undetected on a routine eye exams if not appropriately screened. Binocular vision disorders can occur in kids who have 20/20 vision and normal eye health, but cause difficulties with reading including headaches, fatigue, inattention, re-reading, losing one's place while reading, and more. We offer eye tracking technology to evaluate what the eyes are doing when a child is reading and how accurate the eye movements are for reading.
Visual Processing Evaluation
Visual processing is the brain' ability to interpret what the eyes see. This examination uses a comprehesive battery of standardized testing to evaluate which visual processing skill may be deficient and causing difficulties with reading, writing, and learning. With increased screen time demands and the need to work on mulitple modalities, the need for visual processing examinations to help guide school systems in how to accommodate some student's learning needs has increased. If a student has trouble with visual learning, the more precise we can be as to guide how to teach the child, the more empowered they will be to learn. Read more about visual processing exams here.
Vision-related reading problems share the same symptoms as other pediatric diagnoses:
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Difficulty concentrating
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Taking far too long and/or making mistakes when copying information from the board to the notebook
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Rereading or skipping lines of print
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Letter reversals
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Difficulty recognizing words
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Difficulty following a line of text or a moving object
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Short attention span
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Poor reading comprehension
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Poor handwriting
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Slow completion of work
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Loss of interest in reading
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Reduced visual memory - can't remember what we read, or difficulty remembering how a word is spelled
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Headaches
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Dizziness with visual motion
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Carsickness
