The first step in reading is reading fluency. Once a child has mastered that, they will start to be able to comprehend what it is they are reading.

Without comprehension, reading is a pointless and frustrating exercise. What most people don’t realize is that visual information is essential for reading comprehension.

If a child struggles with reading comprehension it could be due to an undiagnosed vision problem.

A traditional vision exam primarily measures visual acuity, or 20/20 eyesight, unusually it does not assess functional vision, so a child with ’20/20 sight’ could still have a visual problem.

Functional vision is how your entire visual system – the brain, the eyes, the visual pathways – works together to help you interact with your environment.

There are 17 visual skills that impact a child’s school performances.

The functional vision exam includes a comprehensive assessment of the visual skills including;

• Lazy eye
• Eye focusing
• Eye Tracking
• Binocular function
• Convergence
• Visual information processing

A functional eye exam is vital for all children with reading comprehension challenges.

If your child is not reading to their grade level, contact an eye doctor near you, who can diagnose and treat any visual problems.

SEE RELATED: 2021 Update: Reading Fluency

Vision and reading comprehension

There are in fact 17 visual skills that can impact a child’s school grades. Listed below are just 3 of the top functional vision problems related to reading comprehension:

1. Eye focusing (Accommodative insufficiency)

Accommodation is the eyes’ ability to focus. Tiny muscles inside your eyes contract or relax to change the shape of your eyes’ lenses and allow you to bring objects at different distances into focus.

When you focus on something close, the muscles contract, and when you focus on something in the distance, they relax. This can make reading difficult when trying to maintain focus on objects up close, such as a book.

2. Convergence insufficiency

Convergence insufficiency is a problem with keeping both eyes working together, especially when focusing on words on a page.

When the eyes don’t converge accurately, it can affect the ability to concentrate on simple near tasks. This can also result in headaches, double vision, and visual discomfort when performing near activities like reading.

3. Eye tracking (Irregular saccades)

Eye saccades is a visual skill that enables a person to make quick eye movements from one object to another, such as moving from word to word while reading. Irregular saccades make reading more challenging and difficult for a child to keep their place when reading.

Can vision therapy help?

Vision therapy is a fully personalized treatment program designed to improve and strengthen visual skills, and retrain a child’s visual system to interpret visual input with increased accuracy and ease.

Vision therapy is more than just simple eye exercises — it improves brain-eye communication, and the effective operating of a child’s visual system.

The goal of vision therapy is to boost attention, concentration, learning, and reading.

LEARN MORE: Guide to Vision and Learning Difficulties

Contact an eye doctor near you that specializes in vision therapy, this may just be what your child needs to significantly improve their reading comprehension.

The post 2021 Update: Reading Comprehension appeared first on Optometrists.org.

How can optometrists help?

Visual processing describes the way the brain processes visual information – this includes all information from a child’s reading, computer, sports, facial cues and social interactions.

Visual processing difficulties affect many students diagnosed with reading and learning disabilities, dyslexia and ADD/ADHD.

What are VIP difficulties?

There are several different types of visual processing difficulties, each with its own symptoms. An individual can have more than one type of visual processing difficulty.

1. Visual discrimination

Visual discrimination is the ability to recognize similarities and differences between shapes, sizes, objects, colors and patterns.

2. Visual figure-ground

Figure-ground perception is the ability to filter visual information that isn’t immediately relevant  so that you can focus on the relevant visual information.

3. Form constancy 

Form constancy is a visual perceptual skill that allows you to understand that a form, shape or object stays the same even when it changes its size, position or is in a different environment.

4. Visual closure

Visual closure is a visual perceptual skill that allows you to know what an object is even when the object is only partially visible.

5. Visual memory

Visual memory is the ability to immediately recall what the eye has seen.

6. Visual sequential memory

Visual sequential memory is the ability to remember and recall a sequence of objects and/or events in the correct order.

7. Visual motor integration

Visual motor integration is the ability to interpret visual information and respond with a motor action.

Signs VIP difficulties?

The most common signs of VIP difficulties include:

• Slow reading speed
• Difficulties with spelling
• Confusing similar looking words
• Reading words backwards
• Writing letters or numbers backwards
• Reduced math skills
• Poor reading comprehension
• Messy handwriting
• Confusion of letters and numbers

How can vision therapy help?

A vision therapy treatment program can improve a child’s visual processing abilities through eye exercises that help retrain the eyes and brain to work together.

Schedule an eye exam with a vision therapy eye doctor near you who can diagnose and treat any vision problems your child may have.

The post What is Visual Information Processing? appeared first on Optometrists.org.

Reduced visual efficiency can negatively impact a person’s performance in school, at the office, and on the sports field, many times these children are labelled as dyslexic. Understanding and knowing what to look out for can help with early detection and treatment of visual problems.

What is visual efficiency?

Visual efficiency is understood by measuring how effectively the eyes work together as a team. 

The measurements of the eye’s teamwork are calculated based on the visual skills such as their ability to track across a page, converge, and focus. All these skills are essential for effective processing of visual information and for effective reading fluency.

1. Eye Tracking Problems

Eye tracking involves smooth and effortless movements of the eyes. Proper eye tracking helps us gather and scan information quickly from the environment around us, so that we can understand where we are and what our next move should be.

When eye movements are slower than normal, it may indicate an eye tracking problem. Three types of eye tracking problems are: difficulties with pursuits and saccades and fixation disparities.

Individuals with an eye tracking problem may:

• Easily lose their place while reading
• Have difficulty spelling
• Have poor hand-eye coordination
• Often skip lines when reading
• Omit or substitute words while reading.

Contact a vision therapy eye doctor who can help diagnose and treat any visual problems you may be experiencing, especially if your child has reading fluency difficulties.

SEE RELATED: Smart in Everything… Except School

2. Eye Teaming Problems

Your two eyes need to work in perfect unison and coordination in order to see the world in a clear and precise way. The images the brain creates may be uncomfortable or confusing when the eyes don’t function as a team.

Convergence insufficiency and convergence excess are two common eye teaming problems.

Convergence insufficiency occurs when the eyes find it difficult to focus inwards on an object, such as when reading or using a computer.

Convergence excess is the opposite: the eyes aren’t able to easily focus outward. This leads to difficulties with distance vision.

Symptoms of eye teaming problems include:

• Blurred or double vision
• Difficulty concentrating
• Difficulty reading
• Headaches
• Poor depth perception
• Rubbing or squinting of the eyes
• Uncomfortable or tired eyes

3. Focusing Problems

Focusing problems occur when there are difficulties either changing focus from close to far and back again or maintaining focus, such as on a book or computer screen, for hours at a time.

Every time our eyes shift their gaze from one object to another, they accommodate, or change focus, so that each object appears clear. Focusing difficulties occur when the eye can’t relax and tighten or maintain position over an extended period.

Symptoms of focusing problems can include:

• Difficulty or avoiding reading
• Blurred vision
• Blurred vision when shifting focus from one object to another
• Frequent eye rubbing
• Holding objects close to the face in order to view them
• Headaches during or after reading
• Watery eyes

Other symptoms of visual efficiency problems include:

• Holding a book too close
• Uses finger pointing while reading
• Needing excessive time for homework
• Poor reading comprehension
• Slow reading
• Head tilting while reading
• Closing of one eye
• Clumsiness
• Words or letters moving, jumping, or running together when reading

Visual efficiency and vision therapy

Vision therapy helps to increase and strengthen the eye-brain connection, which is often weak in a person with visual efficiency problems and poor reading fluency.

A vision therapy program involves custom-made visual exercises that create new pathways in the visual system. By regularly performing these exercises patient’s will develop improved visual skills and may notice a significant reduction in their symptoms.

Vision therapy may also involve the use of specialized lenses, filters, or prisms to help relieve symptoms.

LEARN MORE:   Vision Therapy for Children

If you or your child experiences any of the symptoms mentioned above, contact a vision therapy eye doctor near you to have your vision evaluated.

The post 2021 Update: Vision Therapy for Visual Efficiency appeared first on Optometrists.org.

If a child has any type of visual dysfunction it could prevent them from achieving academic success and affect their reading fluency.

These children are often bright and intelligent, but somehow their reading is still below grade level.

If your child is not reading to their potential contact an eye doctor near you, as they may have an undetected visual problem, which might require reading glasses or vision therapy.

SEE RELATED: 2021 Update: Writing and Spelling

What is reading fluency?

Reading fluency is the ability to read accurately, smoothly and with expression. Fluent readers recognize words automatically, without struggling over decoding issues. As they read, the words sound natural, as if they’re speaking.

Fluency is an essential classroom skill as it bridges the child’s word recognition to their comprehension. 

It allows students time to focus on what the text is saying and enables them to make connections between what they are reading and their own background knowledge. They are able to concentrate on comprehension.

Non-fluent readers sound choppy and read slowly. They spend more time decoding, leaving less time and energy for comprehension. They often have to read the same passage several times to comprehend what they are reading.

Reading fluency and vision

Reading fluency is dependent on the strength of visual skills such as accommodation, binocular vision, convergence, saccades, and visual fixation. Many children benefit with reading glasses, while others require a program of vision therapy to improve their visual efficiency skills.

A deficiency in any of these vital visual skills can result in reading difficulties, which can  impact a child’s ability to learn.

Which visual skills are necessary for reading?

• Accommodation – the eyes’ ability to switch focus between two distances while maintaining clear vision.
• Binocular fusion – the brain’s ability to form a single image using the distinct visual information it receives from each eye.
• Convergence – the eyes’ ability to maintain a single image by simultaneously turning inward to focus on a near object, such as a book or computer screen.
• Saccades – rapid eye movements between two or more focus points, such as when the eyes move from one word to the next when reading a sentence across a page.
• Visual fixation – the eye’s ability to accurately focus on a target image, such as a word on a page.

Could my child have a vision problem?

It can be difficult to identify a vision problem in a child, as they may not be able to verbally express themselves or know that they have a vision problem, such as visual efficiency problems.

Common signs of a vision problem may include:

• Behavioral problems
• Covering one eye
• Excessive fidgeting
• Frequent blinking
• Limited attention span
• Reading avoidance
• Reading below school grade level
• Reading comprehension difficulties
• School avoidance
• Tilting head to one side

If your child is displaying signs of a visual impairment, it is important to visit an eye doctor near you for a comprehensive evaluation of your child’s vision and visual skills.

Can vision therapy help?

Vision is a learned skill that can be trained and strengthened, vision therapy is a program to develop the visual skills.

If a vision problem is at the root of your child’s reading difficulty, a vision therapy program can help.

A vision therapy program may help to improve your child’s visual skills and provide them with the necessary tools to succeed in reading and learning, and enjoy a lifetime of success.

Each vision therapy program is created to the individual needs of each child, and may include specialized lenses, prisms, filters, and eye exercises to help retrain the eye-brain connections and improve vision.

LEARN MORE: Guide to Vision and Learning Difficulties

If you think a vision problem may be affecting your child’s reading success, schedule an evaluation with a vision therapy eye doctor who can help strengthen their visual skills to improve reading fluency.

The post 2021 Update: Reading Fluency appeared first on Optometrists.org.

A common question asked by parents

Parents of school-age children who have struggled with reading and learning are often looking for answers to many questions.

Most likely the most frequent question asked by parents is, “Why does my bright child continue to have difficulty with reading fluency and paying attention in the classroom?”

To provide some direction, two years ago the VisionHelp Group interviewed educational specialist, Wendy Rosen, author of the book, ‘The Hidden Link Between Vision and Learning, Why Millions of Learning Disabled Children are Misdiagnosed’.

In her video, ‘Misdiagnosing Learning Disabilities’, Wendy mentions the diagnosis, “Convergence Insufficiency”, a binocular vision dysfunction usually associated with a reduced convergence ability and commonly identified with the Red/Green Penlight Near Point of Convergence (NPC) test.

This test which can be done in about 30 seconds is one tool in the optometrist’s use to evaluate a patient’s vision skills.

Harvard Medical School

Harvard Medical School research published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology entitled: ‘Receded Near Point of Convergence is Not Diagnostic of Convergence Insufficiency’.

What they found was that the majority (89%) of post-concussed patients had a reduced near point of convergence (NPC).

Other results showed that these patients also had high incidence of;

1. Poor visual tracking (oculomotor dysfunction)
2. Reduced eye focusing problems (accommodative dysfunction) and
3. Difficulties with eye teaming and
4. Problems with focusing flexibility (binocular vergence/accommodative dysfunction)

The conclusions by the JAO Harvard researchers was that, “Because treatment options for the various oculomotor dysfunctions differ, it is prudent that these patients undergo a thorough examination of their vergence and accommodative systems so that an accurate diagnosis can be made and appropriate treatment prescribed.”

Complex visual problems should be addressed with a comprehensive evaluation process followed by a comprehensive model of treatment to meet the patient’s individual visual needs.

Vision Skills and Reading

Research shows that those children with vision-based reading and learning problems also have a high frequency of oculomotor, accommodative and binocular vergence/accommodative problems!

Therefore, the importance of assessing binocular vision skills, plus additional sensorimotor areas, is critical to assessing those children with reading and learning problems.

When the initial testing diagnosis identifies a reduced near point of convergence, it is essential to have a comprehensive sensorimotor and visual perceptual evaluation so that an accurate diagnosis can be made.

Vision Therapy

Once identified, as outlined by the American Optometric Association CPG-18, the best approach to treatment involves a comprehensive model of office-based vision therapy.

Vision therapy includes working one-on-one with a skilled vision therapist, sessions are typically 45-60 minutes, 1-2 times per week in-office with assigned home support activities.

Vision therapy should be provided in conjunction with lenses, prisms, and/or therapeutic tints prescribed and supervised by an experienced Doctor of Optometry in developmental vision and rehabilitation.

The post Is there a Link between Visual Skills and Reading? appeared first on Optometrists.org.

As vision is key to so many other systems, vision intervention, such as vision therapy, can have a profound effect on an autistic child.

If your child has been diagnosed with autism, contact an eye doctor near you, who can exam and strengthen your child’s visual skills.

SEE RELATED: Vision and Autism: Part 1

Benefits of vision therapy

Specific optical lenses, prisms, tints, and vision therapy are highly effective in treating patients on the autism spectrum.

The power of lenses and prisms should not be underestimated. The appropriately prescribed lenses and prisms can have immediate and profound effects on the total system and can contribute towards integrating the individual.

After a program of vision therapy, I routinely see immediate improvements in:

• Posture
• Language skills
• Eye hand and eye body coordination
• Visual skills

Often, I see a child that could not catch a ball, catch it easily, or one that did not speak, start engaging in conversation with the glasses on.

Signs vision therapy is needed

In addition to lenses and prisms, sometimes with or without tints, vision therapy is an important treatment for individuals with vision difficulties.

The most commonly observed signs, indicating that vision therapy could benefit a child include:

• Poor eye contact
• Repetitive hand movements
• Staring
• Side looking
• Light sensitivity
• Poor coordination
• Learning challenges

These above may be signs of inefficient or poorly developed visual skills.

A customized program of vision therapy provides the opportunity to develop these visual skills in a guided and therapeutic manner.

Examination of visual skills is essential

As an integrative optometrist, I recognize the impact a child’s functional visual skills has on their learning and enjoyment of every day tasks.

Assessment of the visual skills for all children on the autistism spectrum should include:

• Lazy eye
• Eye turns
• Focusing
• Eye teaming
• Eye tracking
• Convergence
• Stereopsis
• Visual processing

It is essential to assess vision in the context of nutrition, physical health, development, environmental and genetic factors, cognitive ability, motor, speech and language, and educational demands.

Autism and vision

Vision is a child’s dominant sense and much of the brain is dedicated to visual learning. 

The individual learns most efficiently in a multimodal fashion. That means that learning occurs best when inputs from different parts of the brain match.

In children with developmental delays, there is often a lack of cohesion between visual, auditory, and other inputs leading to the unusual behaviors, language, and socialization difficulties such as repetitive movements, echolalia or repeating words, and lack of eye contact.

Accurate assessment of the child in a vision examination includes looking at:

• Posture
• Balance
• Physical health
• Receptive and expressive speech patterns
• Cognitive understanding of the tasks given
• Motor coordination
• Attention and awareness

The functional vision examination gives essential information so that the appropriate intervention can be recommended.

LEARN MORE: Vision for Special Needs

If your child has been diagnosed with autism, contact an eye doctor near you, who can exam and strengthen your child’s visual skills.

The post Vision and Autism: Part 2 appeared first on Optometrists.org.

Poor visual skills can negatively impact performance in school, at the office, and on the sports field. Understanding and knowing what to look out for can help with early detection and treatment of visual problems.

Below are various visual efficiency problems and symptoms that are commonly diagnosed by eye doctors.

1. Eye teaming problems

Your two eyes need to work in perfect coordination and unison, in order to see the world in a clear and precise way. The images the brain creates may be confusing or uncomfortable when the eyes don’t function as a team.

Convergence excess and convergence insufficiency are two common eye teaming problems.

Convergence insufficiency refers to when the eyes have difficulty focusing inwards on an object that is being held closer to the nose. Convergence excess is the opposite, the eyes aren’t able to easily focus outward. This leads to difficulties with distance vision.

Symptoms of eye teaming problems include:

• Double or blurred vision
• Difficulty concentrating
• Difficulty reading
• Eye rubbing or squinting
• Headaches
• Poor depth perception
• Tired or uncomfortable eyes

2. Eye tracking problems

Eye tracking involves effortless and smooth movements of the eyes. Proper eye tracking helps quickly gain information from and scan the environment around us to understand where we are and what our next move should be.

When eye movements are slower than normal, it may indicate an eye tracking problem. Three types of eye tracking problems are: deficiency or pursuits, deficiency of saccades, and fixation dysfunction.

Individuals with an eye tracking problem may:

• Have poor hand-eye coordination
• Easily lose their place while reading
• Often skip lines when reading
• Spelling difficulties
• Substitute or omit words

Contact an eye doctor who can help diagnose and treat any visual problems you may be experiencing. Vision therapy might be the solution you have been seeking.

SEE RELATED: How does Visual Efficiency affect Learning?

3. Focusing problems

Every time our eyes shift their gaze from one object to another, they accommodate their focusing power so that each object appears clear. When the muscles responsible for accommodating focus in the eye can’t relax, tighten or maintain position, focusing problems arise.

Symptoms of focusing problems can include:

• Avoiding or difficulty reading
• Blurred vision
• Blurred vision when shifting focus from one object to another
• Headaches during or after reading
• Holding objects close to the face in order to view them
• Frequent eye rubbing
• Watery eyes

Vision therapy can help

Vision therapy helps to strengthen and increase eye-brain connection, which is often weak in a person with visual efficiency problems.

A personalized vision therapy program involves custom-made visual exercises that create new pathways in the visual system. By regularly performing these exercises patient’s will develop improved visual skills and may notice a significant reduction in symptoms. Vision therapy may also involve the use of specialized lenses, filters, or prisms.

LEARN MORE: Guide to Vision Therapy

If you or a loved one experiences any of the symptoms mentioned above, contact an eye doctor near you to have your vision evaluated.

The post What Are Visual Efficiency Problems? appeared first on Optometrists.org.

The symptoms that persist following a concussion are collectively called Post Trauma Vision Syndrome (PTVS). In most cases, the eyes are physically healthy but not communicating properly with the brain, this is very common following any type of traumatic brain injury.

The eyes are controlled by the brain, so when someone suffers from an injury to the brain, whether it is a car accident, stroke, or concussion, the visual system can be significantly impacted causing a range of life-changing symptoms.

Neuro-optometric rehabilitation can help relieve the disabling post-concussion symptoms.

Schedule an appointment with a vision therapy eye doctor to start your neuro-optometric vision rehabilitation program.

SEE RELATED: Sleep Apnea, Concussion and Vision

What is neuro-optometric vision rehabilitation?

Neuro-optometric vision rehabilitation focuses on different visual disorders that occur as a result of developmental delays, brain injuries, or concussions.

During primary treatment of a brain injury, visual problems often go unnoticed, as a regular eye exam may not show the extent to which the visual processing and functioning of the eyes has been affected.

A neuro-optometric consultation goes beyond a regular eye exam, as it involves in-depth testing to analyze the communication between the visual system and the brain, and how the injury affects daily tasks, such as balance and movement, reading, and more.

Neuro-optometric rehabilitation therapy is a non-invasive program to rehabilitate vision, the integration of vision with other senses, visual-motor disorders and visual information processing.

Treatment usually involves a customized vision therapy program, optical prisms or therapeutic lenses. Computer-based activities specifically designed to improve the neural functioning following a TBI may also be prescribed.

When vision therapy is used as part of neuro-optometric rehabilitation it helps redevelop brain-eye communication, allowing the patient to learn how to regain control of their visual system and improve their quality of life.

Common post-concussion symptoms

Typical symptoms that are experienced after a concussion may include:

• Headaches/migraines
• Double vision
• Dizziness
• Difficulty reading
• Nausea
• Difficulty focusing
• Difficulty with coordination, balance
• Sensitivity to light
• Poor depth perception

If you experience any of these symptoms post-concussion, contact a vision therapy eye doctor near you.

Vision problems associated with brain injuries can be disabling, as they often affect:

• Eye focusing
• Eye teaming
• Eye movements
• Motion sensitivity

Neuro-optometric rehabilitation treatment

Treatments will vary for each individual as every injury is unique.

Some types of treatment include:

• Patching – Placing a patch on one eye or part of the visual field of one eye. This helps eliminate double vision, a common symptom post-concussion.
• Prism Lenses – As part of a vision therapy program, prisms are often prescribed to help eliminate binocular vision problems such as double vision. In addition, they are used to treat poor balance, which is another common symptom post-concussion.
• Specific Prescription Lenses (Glasses)– These lenses help enhance visual comfort and clarity. They also help compensate for the damage done to the neural system
• Vision Therapy – This is a personalized program that improves the communication between the brain, body, and eyes. A vision therapy program focuses on improving visual skills such as hand-eye coordination, eye tracking, peripheral vision, focusing, and depth perception.

Following a brain injury or a concussion, a customized neuro-optometric rehabilitation program could be what you have been looking for.

LEARN MORE:  Guide to Neuro-Optometry

If you have experienced a concussion, it is recommended to contact a vision therapy eye doctor to learn more about neuro-optometric rehabilitation – it might just change your life.

The post Vision Therapy for Concussions appeared first on Optometrists.org.

Many children suffer with low self esteem, which can dramatically improve after completing a program of vision therapy.

Here’s one story of how vision therapy changed a life.

*Names have been changed for privacy.

Morgan, age 14

Today Morgan is a happy and confident high school student who enjoys sleepovers with his friends, participating in school and sports activities, and hanging out skateboarding with friends.

However, less than one year ago he was afraid to try new things and his self-esteem was impacting the care-free life of a teenager.

Morgan was not enjoyable 8th grade, some days it seemed he understood a concept then the next day it was as if he was learning it all over again.

The main issue was that Morgan avoided reading, and noticed when he did read, the words were blurry or seemed to ‘float’ on the page.

Morgan’s eyes were working super hard to read, it’s no wonder he struggled with reading, comprehension and even spelling was becoming a major challenge.

Vision therapy

Morgan began a vision therapy program and within a number of weeks he had started to enjoy reading and even began to ask, “Can I read the next book?”

Morgan slowly gained more  confidence, even his body posture and eye contact improved.

Morgan’s teachers noted an increase in his reading grade level, neater handwriting, and he was happier to contribute to class discussions.  His overall enjoyment of sports improved as did his balance and eye-hand coordination.

By the end of the vision therapy program Morgan was almost reading as well as all his friends as he now has significantly improved;

• eye teaming and tracking
• focusing
• visual processing skills

Morgan’s success was due to a ton of hard work as well as support from his eye doctor, vision therapists and family and friends.

The confident smile on his face and the improved self esteem that radiate from him now means his life has forever changed.

In fact, Morgan is now just a regular fun loving skateboarding teen-ager.

The post Building Self Esteem appeared first on Optometrists.org.

If your child is the 1 out of every 4 children that is struggling in school, it could be their vision.

Children who struggle with school, or have a learning difficulty, and begin to fall behind their friends often become unmotivated to learn. 

With the help of a regular comprehensive eye exam by an eye doctor experienced in children’s vision and vision therapy, your child may not have to struggle anymore.

If you think your child may have a vision problem, schedule an appointment with an eye doctor as soon as possible. The Find an Eye Doctor directory lists eye doctors near you that provide vision therapy for children.

SEE RELATED: Harvard Statement: Vision and Literacy

Here are a few eye conditions that can significantly impact reading and learning;

Amblyopia (lazy-eye)

Amblyopia, commonly known as ‘lazy eye’ is a visual condition that affects over 3 in 100 children.

A lazy eye can make it quite difficult to read— causing loss of place, re-reading words, skipping words, substituting or misreading words, and adding words into sentences.

While this condition cannot be corrected with eyeglasses or contact lenses, with early detection and vision therapy, a child with amblyopia can achieve clear and comfortable binocular vision.

Convergence insufficiency 

Convergence insufficiency (CI) affects up to 17 percent of children and adults.

Convergence insufficiency (CI) is a common near-vision condition that affects the ability to learn, read, and work at near distances. This condition tends to manifest or worsen as the demands in school increase for reading and homework assignments.

According to the National Eye Institute (NEI), the most effective treatment for CI is in-office vision therapy.

Strabismus (crossed eyes)

Strabismus affects approximately 4 in 100 children in the United States. 

Strabismus occurs when the two eyes are unable to maintain proper alignment or focus together on an object— one eye looks directly at the object, while the other eye points in a different direction.

Strabismus can impact a child’s ability to read and concentrate during near-vision tasks due to the partial or total loss of stereo vision and binocular depth perception. This can result in fatigue and headaches, and severely impact a child’s academic performance.

Vision therapy is generally recommended to treat the eye turn, but in some cases surgery to realign the eyes may be recommended as well.

Focusing difficulties

Focusing skills allow a student to maintain and establish clear and comfortable vision while performing near-vision tasks, when switching focus between two distances is necessary.

Focusing difficulties can greatly harm a child’s academic success. Fortunately, focusing skills can be developed and strengthened with a program of vision therapy.

Eye-tracking difficulties

Eye-tracking difficulties can occur when the eyes’ movements are slow or irregular. It can significantly affect a student’s ability to learn, read, and even play sports.

Fortunately, this skill can be strengthened with in-office vision therapy.

How does vision therapy help?

Vision therapy is a fully customized treatment program designed to improve and strengthen visual skills. Vision therapy is more than just simple eye exercises.

Each vision therapy program is customized to the individual needs of the child and may include specialized lenses, prisms, filters, and eye exercises to help retrain the eye-brain connection and improve vision.

If you think a vision problem may be making school difficult for your child, a vision therapy program may help to improve their visual skills and provide them with the necessary tools to succeed in school.

LEARN MORE:   Vision Therapy for Children

Schedule a functional vision evaluation with a developmental optometrist near you and give your child the chance to achieve success— both in the classroom and in the future.

The post Which Eye Conditions Can Affect Learning? appeared first on Optometrists.org.