Most baby’s eyes are assessed by a neonatologist within a few days after birth.

Undetected vision problems could affect your baby’s abilities to interact with the environment around them and result in learning or reading delays.

Studies show that up to half of all infants in their first 2 years have astigmatism and long-sightedness.

Here are some answers to questions related to babies and their vision.

#1 Does my baby need eye exams?

Yes, all babies should have their first eye exam at 6 months of age, even if no visual problems are suspected. The most common vision problems in babies and toddlers are farsightedness and astigmatism.

Up to 5% of all infants have amblyopia (lazy eye) and strabismus (eye turn).

#2 What does my baby see?

When babies open their eyes, their vision is fixed at about 12 inches (30 cm). This allows them to see their mother’s face and learn to recognize the source of their food.

At about six weeks a baby’s eyes should be able to follow objects, at about 1-2 meters away and by four months the eyes should work together.

Over the first year or two, a baby’s vision develops rapidly. A two-year-old typically sees around 20/30 vision, nearly the same as an adult.

#3 How can I help my baby’s visual development?

There are many things a parent can do to help their baby’s vision develop. The following are a few examples of age-appropriate activities that can help with an infant’s visual development.

From birth to 4 months;

• Place soft toys within your baby’s focus (up to 12 inches)
• Use a dim lamp or nightlight in your baby’s room
• Feed from alternate left and right breasts
• Talk softly from 12-24 inches away

From 5 to 8 months;

• Encourage floor play and exploration
• Use crib mobile for the baby to grab, pull and kick
• Stimulate grabbing and touching soft objects

From 9 to 12 months;

• Encourage crawling and creeping
• Play hide-and-seek games with toys

As a baby’s eyes are constantly changing, it’s important to get their eyes checked at 6 months and again at 2-3 years of age.

If you notice anything unusual, such as an eye turn, it is important to see an optometrist with experience in babies.

Schedule an eye exam with an eye doctor near you who can discuss your baby’s visual development and ensure they are meeting their milestones.

The post Does my Baby have a Vision Problem? appeared first on Optometrists.org.

You may easily find answers to your questions below. If you still have questions, contact your nearest eye doctor experienced in children’s vision.

Over 2.5 billion children have vision problems, yet 80% of those are preventable.

A comprehensive eye exam will assess not only a child’s vision, but can also detect problems with their eye health and general health.

Schedule an appointment with an eye doctor near you for a comprehensive eye exam to ensure your child has healthy vision and to check for eye diseases and other health problems.

SEE RELATED: Does your Child have a Learning Difficulty?

Here are some frequently asked questions related to pediatric eye health:

1. How regularly should children visit an eye doctor?

The American Optometric Association and the American Public Health Association recommend that children have their first eye exam at 6-12 months of age.

After their first eye exam your optometrist will let you know when their next exam is due. At a minimum, they should return for an eye exam every 1-2 years.

Once a child starts school, they should have  a comprehensive eye exam once a year, or as recommended by their eye doctor.

2. Is a school vision screening sufficient for my child?

No.

School vision screenings are insufficient since they are only intended to detect a few vision problems, such as myopia (nearsightedness).

A thorough eye exam, on the other hand, allows an eye doctor to evaluate a child’s vision and eye health, as well as visual skills like focusing and eye tracking. Since a child’s visual skills are important to their academic success, eye doctors suggest that children have a comprehensive eye exam before starting school and every year after that.

Schedule an appointment with an eye doctor near you to have your child’s vision checked.

3. How does vision play a role when children are diagnosed as dyslexic or learning disabled?

Not every child who has been diagnosed with a learning disability and/or ADHD actually has one or both of these conditions.

Undiagnosed vision problems sometimes present with the same signs and symptoms as dyslexia and attention disorders.

Of course, children with dyslexia, ADHD, and other conditions can experience vision problems at the same time. When children’s vision issues are addressed, they also find it easier to learn.

It is estimated that 25% of school-aged children have an undiagnosed vision problem that could interfere with learning.

4. At what age can a child wear contact lenses?

There is no set age when a child may begin wearing contact lenses. In fact, 4 million children under the age of 18 in the United States wear contacts.

Contact lenses are particularly well suited for children after the age of 8 years.

Many children love wearing contacts especially for active or sports-loving children, and they are an excellent treatment choice for children with myopia.

They may be prescribed for children as young as six months old due to congenital cataracts or other infant eye disorders.

5. My child keeps breaking their glasses. Are there effective long-lasting glasses for children?

There is a wide selection of frames for children that are specifically built to be flexible and withstand a sufficient amount of mechanical stress.

Some children, on the other hand, can manage to break, bend, or damage their glasses, that is why having a spare pair of glasses is advised.

Early vision care can help your child reach their full learning potential.

LEARN MORE: Vision for School

Schedule an eye exam with an eye doctor near you to ensure your child’s vision remains clear and healthy.

The post Children’s Vision: FAQs appeared first on Optometrists.org.

You most likely have nyctalopia, also known as night blindness.

Night blindness is the reduced ability to see at night or in dimly lit environments.  The outer edges of the eye’s retina contain rod cells that are responsible for night vision and detecting movement. When these rod cells are damaged, it becomes difficult to see at night.

Schedule an appointment with an eye doctor near you who can diagnose and manage your eye condition.

SEE RELATED: What Causes Night Blindness?

What Are Symptoms of Night Blindness?

The main symptom of night blindness is difficulty adapting to or seeing in dark environments.

For example, walking into a dark movie theater can be challenging for a person with night blindness, because it may take longer for their eyes to adjust to the darkened theater.

Patients with night blindness often have difficulty driving at night. Road signs may look blurred, and it may be difficult to see pedestrians on the road or sidewalk. They may also squint while driving at night to improve their vision.

Individuals with night blindness may also have reduced contrast sensitivity, which means it’s harder to tell the difference between two adjacent objects of the same or similar color.

What Causes Night Blindness? 

Night blindness isn’t a standalone condition.  Rather it’s a possible symptom of several conditions, including:

1. Myopia (nearsightedness) –  objects in the distance appear blurred; people with myopia often experience some degree of night blindness, especially when driving.
2. Cataracts – the clouding of the lens that can make vision dim and increase glare and light distortion.
3. Glaucoma –  increased pressure inside the eye can damage the optic nerve and retina.
4. Vitamin A deficiency – vitamin A or retinol is found in greens, eggs, liver, orange vegetables, eggs and butter. Retinitis pigmentosa – a genetic disease that changes the way the retina responds to light.
5. Usher syndrome – causes night-blindness and a loss of peripheral (side) vision through the progressive degeneration of cells in the retina.
6. Keratoconus – when the outer layer of the eye, the cornea, thins and becomes deformed.
7. Diabetes – high blood sugar  can damage the blood vessels of the eye and retina, a condition called diabetic retinopathy.

To learn which condition is causing your night blindness, schedule a comprehensive eye exam with an eye doctor near you who will  pinpoint the underlying problem.

How is night blindness treated?

Depending on the source, there are several different ways to treat a patient’s night blindness.

If it’s myopia, a change in lens prescription may do the trick.

If cataracts are found, cataract surgery may be the solution.

For those with a Vitamin A deficiency, supplemental Vitamin A may be prescribed to support eye health.

If you have night blindness, an eye doctor can help by finding the root cause of the problem, and suggest the most appropriate treatment to relieve your symptoms. 

LEARN MORE:  Guide to Eye Conditions

If you or a loved one experiences symptoms of night blindness, schedule a comprehensive eye exam with an eye doctor near you.

The post Having Difficulty Seeing at Night? appeared first on Optometrists.org.

Both of these may require you to rely on an optical correction, either eyeglasses or contact lenses, but for very different reasons.

Common vision problems are known as refractive errors. They occur when the eye is unable to focus light properly. There are four kinds of refractive errors – myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism, and presbyopia.

The two most common types of refractive error are myopia (nearsightedness) and hyperopia (farsightedness).

When you are myopic, it’s easy to see close up, but difficult to see far away. For instance, reading a book is clear but reading a road sign isn’t. When you are hyperopic, it’s the opposite, which explains why you might need reading glasses.

Schedule an eye exam with an eye doctor near you to have clear and comfortable vision.

SEE RELATED: Eye Anatomy: The Back of the Eye

What is Myopia?

Myopia, also called nearsightedness, causes people and objects situated at a distance to appear blurry.

Myopia occurs when the cornea is too curved or the eyeball is too long. This causes the focal point of light to fall in front of the retina instead of on the retina.

Most school-aged children, teens, and young adults who need glasses are diagnosed with nearsightedness, which typically begins in childhood and may advance until the late teen years, when the eyes usually stop growing.

People with myopia might need contact lenses, glasses, or corrective surgery to correct their eyesight. Myopia management (also called Ortho-k) is a non-surgical option for gradually and gently reshaping the cornea.

Symptoms of Nearsightedness

Symptoms of nearsightedness may include:

• Headaches caused by eyestrain
• Blurry vision when looking at distant objects
• Excessive blinking
• Persistent squinting or partially closing the eyelids to see clearly
• Difficulty seeing while driving, especially at night

• Needing to sit close to the television or computer, or at the front of the classroom
• Being unaware of distant objects
• Frequent eye rubbing

If you or your child experience any of these symptoms contact an eye doctor near you.

What is Hyperopia?

Hyperopia, also known as farsightedness, causes close-up objects or people to appear out of focus, while distant objects are clear.

Hyperopia occurs when the cornea’s curve is too flat or the eyeball is too short. This causes light to reach a point of focus beyond the retina instead of on the retina.

Farsightedness is often an issue from birth but since a developing brain has the ability to adapt, it can take a while to diagnose. Children who are farsighted may develop a lazy eye or eye turn.

As with myopia, people with hyperopia can benefit from glasses, contact lenses, transitional or bifocal lenses, or corrective surgery. School-age children can be prescribed ‘low plus’ lenses for hyperopia. Some people might need to wear contacts and glasses all the time while others might need them only for reading, computer work, and other close-up tasks.

Symptoms of Farsightedness

Symptoms of farsightedness may include:

• Blurry vision
• Nearby objects may appear blurry
• Squinting to see clearly
• Burning eyes, and aching in or around the eyes
• General eye discomfort
• Trouble focusing on nearby objects
• Headaches or fatigue after doing close work such as reading, writing, or drawing

LEARN MORE:  Guide to Eye Health

A comprehensive eye exam tests for nearsightedness and farsightedness. Schedule your eye exam with an eye doctor near you, so that you can start to see clearly.

The post Nearsighted or Farsighted? appeared first on Optometrists.org.

Myopia affects 1.45 billion people worldwide and is the most common refractive error among children and young adults.

Myopia, also known as nearsightedness, occurs when the eye elongates, and rays of light entering the eye are focused in front of the light-sensitive retina rather than directly on it. This causes blurry distance vision.

Myopia is not just blurry vision, but can lead to serious sight-threatening eye diseases.

If you think you or your child may have myopia, contact an eye doctor near you to schedule an eye exam.

SEE RELATED: What’s Worse: High Myopia or Smoking?

Myth 1: Myopia only affects children

Fact: While in most cases nearsightedness develops in childhood, it is also possible to develop this condition during your adult years.

Eye examinations for children showing early signs of blurry vision are vital to rule out blurry vision due to an eye condition known as ‘pseudo-myopia’.

The blurry vision is due to eyestrain or a binocular vision dysfunction and vision therapy or reading/computer glasses might be prescribed to clear up the vision, without needing distance glasses for full-time use.

Myth 2: Wearing contact lenses or eyeglasses makes myopia worse

Fact: Prescription contact lenses and eyeglasses do not worsen myopia. Corrective glasses help you see clearly and comfortably.

There are even certain types of optical lenses that your eye doctor may prescribe to help manage myopia progression.

Some people mistakenly believe that wearing weaker lenses than the ones prescribed by your eye doctor will prevent your eyesight from getting worse.  In reality, wearing a weaker prescription contradicts the purpose of using corrective eyewear, which is to correct your vision.

Schedule an eye exam with an eye doctor to find out which type of lens can help manage the progression of myopia.

Myth 3: To cure myopia, take vitamins

Fact: Vitamins have been proven to prevent and slow the progression of some eye conditions including cataracts and age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

However, no vitamin has been shown to cure or prevent myopia. All vitamins and supplements should only be taken under the advice of your healthcare professional.

Myth 4: Vision therapy can’t help control progressive myopia

Fact: Vision therapy can help with progressive myopia.

People who have reduced focusing skills, have a greater risk of developing progressive myopia.

Vision therapy is an effective treatment for people whose myopia is caused by  poor eye focusing skills and not the shape of the eye.

Vision therapy is a personalized program that trains the visual system, including the brain-eye connection, to work more efficiently— thereby improving focusing abilities.

Myth 5: There is no way to slow down the progression of myopia

Fact: There are a number ways to slow the progression of myopia.

Myopia Management is an evidence-based treatment that has been clinically proven to slow down the myopia progression.

Myopia Management may also prevent serious life-changing vision loss.

This treatment program includes:

• Multifocal lenses, which offer clear vision at various focal distances. There is scientific evidence that wearing multifocal glasses or multifocal soft contact lenses during the day can limit the progression of myopia compared to single-vision glasses or contact lenses.
• Orthokeratology/Ortho-k are specialized custom-fit contact lenses that have been shown to decrease the rate of myopia progression. Ortho-k gently reshapes the cornea overnight, during sleep.

Spend more time outdoors. Studies have found that children who spend significant time playing outdoors in the sunlight may have slower myopia progression than children who spend more time indoors.

Take a break. Doing close work, such as reading, doing homework, and spending an excessive amount of time looking at a digital screen has been linked to myopia.

Taking frequent breaks to focus on objects farther away can help. One well-known eye exercise is the 20-20-20 rule, where you take a 20-second break to view something 20 feet away every 20 minutes.

Regular eye exams are essential to determine whether early detection can help prevent or slow the progression of myopia.

LEARN MORE: Guide to Pediatric Eye Conditions

Schedule an eye exam with a vision therapy eye doctor, who can diagnose and manage your myopia.

The post Top 5 Myopia Myths appeared first on Optometrists.org.

While a cure for myopia has yet to be found, vision therapy can help by targeting certain factors that contribute to myopia (short-sighted).

If you think that vision therapy might be able to help you or your child, schedule your functional visual evaluation.

SEE RELATED: The Benefits of Outdoor Play for Children with Myopia

What is myopia?

Myopia, also known as nearsightedness, causes distant objects to appear out of focus or blurry.

Myopia occurs when the eye grows too long, or the cornea and/or eye lens are too curved relative to the length of the eyeball.

Myopia can be controlled by a process known as Myopia Management.

Some signs and symptoms of myopia include:

• Holding books close to the eyes
• Blurry distance vision
• Reduced clarity of vision, compared to what others can see clearly
• Squinting when reading the board or watching TV
• Sitting at the front of the classroom to clearly see the teacher and board
• Sitting at close proximity to the TV or computer screen
• Disinterest in playing sports that require clear distance vision

If you or your child experiences any of these symptoms contact an eye doctor near to you.

Facts about vision therapy

Vision therapy is an evidence-based program designed to;

• Train the eyes and brain to work as a team
• Develop visual skills like accommodation, convergence, eye tracking, depth perception, teaming, focusing, visual processing and visual memory
• Be a safe and non-invasive set of visual exercises tailored to an individual’s specific needs
• Be fun and involve the use of specialized filters or prisms, balance beams, computerized aids and other therapeutic tools

Vision Therapy and Myopia

Vision therapy may not be able to treat or fully reverse myopia; however, some people may benefit from preventing or slowing down the progression of myopia.

Poor focusing skills have been linked to myopia, so many patients report that their myopia symptoms have improved during or after the vision therapy process.

Some vision therapists found this was a result of strengthening a visual skill called accommodation – the eyes’ ability to adjust focus as the distance between an individual and object changes.

A spasm of accommodation, also known as “pseudo-myopia,” occurs when the eyes lock their focus on a near object but then have difficulty releasing the focus to view distant objects. The reason this is considered a false myopia is because it involves  the focusing mechanism of the lens and not the elongation of the eye, a characteristic of true myopia.

However, pseudo-myopia can be treated with vision therapy, assuming the accommodation spasm was the only culprit for blurry vision at a distance. If that is the case, after a successful vision therapy program, the patient may no longer need to wear prescription lenses for vision correction.

Myopia management may be another option to discuss with your optometrist.

While the research on this subject is still ongoing, vision therapy may be able to improve a person’s blurry vision in many cases.

LEARN MORE: Guide to Pediatric Eye Conditions

If you or your child has myopia and you’re curious if vision therapy can help, schedule a functional visual assessment.

The post Myopia and Vision Therapy appeared first on Optometrists.org.

If you’re experiencing vision problems or it’s simply time for you to schedule your next eye examination, here are a few tips to get the most out of your eye exam with your friendly eye doctor.

The more information you can give your eye doctor during your checkup, the more they will be able to accurately assess your vision and eye health and discuss the many options available to you.

SEE RELATED: Are Dilated Eye Exams Important? 

Here are 4 quick tips to ensure better results when visiting your eye doctor.

1. Bring a list of symptoms

Any time you notice a change in your vision or other eye-related symptoms, jot them down, along with how long you’ve been experiencing them.

Symptoms to take note of include:

• Headaches
• Dry, itchy, or watery eyes
• Eye pain
• Flashes of light or floaters
• Blurry vision
• Distorted vision
• Poor depth perception
• Sensitivity to light
• Difficulty seeing objects up close

2. Bring a list of medications

Make a note of any medications you take – whether over-the-counter and prescription.

Whether you’re taking eye drops for glaucoma or prescription medication for high blood pressure, bring the name and dosage — or the medications themselves — to your next eye appointment.

This will give your eye doctor insights into your eye health and your overall health, and prevent the doctor from prescribing medication that could worsen a preexisting condition or  negatively interact with what you are already taking.

If you have any questions about the side effects of medications, don’t hesitate to ask your eye doctor.

3. Bring in all your eyeglasses and contacts lenses

Try to bring your prescription contact lenses or glasses to your appointment. This will allow the  eye doctor to assess your prescription and make adjustments if needed.

The doctor may ask you questions related to your eyewear to determine whether you need an update.

4. Know your family medical history

Knowing your family medical history is vitally important as many eye conditions have a genetic cause.

Many eye diseases and conditions run in families, so the more information you can provide about your family’s medical history, the better.

You don’t need to know every single family member’s detailed medical and history of eye conditions. Start with your close family — parents, grandparents, and siblings.

Some genetic eye conditions and diseases you should mention:

• Cataracts
• Glaucoma
• Color blindness
• Macular degeneration
• Strabismus
• Retinitis pigmentosa

Getting the most out of your next eye exam starts with preparation.

LEARN MORE:  Guide to Eye Exams

When you schedule your eye exam, you will be ready by following these tips.

The post What to Do Before an Eye Exam? appeared first on Optometrists.org.

When you go for your comprehensive eye exam your eye doctor will most likely dilate your eyes with atropine eye drops. But did you know that they can be used to treat eye conditions as well?

SEE RELATED: Are Eye Drops Confusing?

What does atropine do?

Atropine sulfate is an antimuscarinic agent used as a cycloplegic and mydriatic. The eye drops are used in the treatment of iritis and uveitis to immobilize the iris and ciliary muscle and to prevent or break down adhesions inside the eye.

This eye drop is also used to diagnose eye problems such as blurred vision (refraction) in children below 6 years and children with cross-eye, especially convergent strabismus.

Atropine eye drops widen the pupil and relax the muscles that enable the eyes to focus, allowing eye doctors to provide more accurate diagnosis and effective treatment options.

The effects of the drops are temporary and the eye returns to normal when the drops wear off.

When you schedule an eye exam the eye doctor can explain why atropine is used during a comprehensive eye exam, including treating certain eye conditions.

What can atropine treat?

Atropine eye drops contain atropine sulfate, which widens the pupil and relaxes the muscles that allow the eyes to focus. This eye drop is also used in the treatments, including;

• Myopia management
• Lazy eyes
• Eye inflammation

Myopia management

Myopia, also known as nearsightedness, is a common eye condition where close up objects appear clear, but faraway objects appear blurry.

In recent years, to slow the progression of myopia, low-doses of atropine eye drops in 0.01%, 0.02%, and 0.05% concentrations have been found as an effective treatment option.

Lazy eye treatment

Amblyopia, also known as lazy eye, causes one eye to significantly weaken. Atropine drops relax the muscle in the stronger eye, causing that eye to have blurred vision.

Research has shown that using atropine eye drops to blur the better-seeing eye can improve the vision in the lazy eye by helping to force the lazy eye to work harder. Children sometimes prefer to have an eye drop once a day rather than wearing an eye patch for several hours a day.

Ocular inflammation

Another eye condition that atropine drops are used to treat is inflammation in the eye. The eye drops are used in the treatment of iritis and uveitis to immobilize the iris and ciliary muscle and to prevent or break down adhesions inside the eye.

LEARN MORE:  Guide to Eye Conditions

If you or your child have any of the above eye conditions, schedule an eye doctor appointment to find out if atropine drops are a treatment option for you.

The post When are Atropine Eye Drops Used? appeared first on Optometrists.org.

Multifocal contact lenses are prescribed for children to support their learning and school performance, as well as for myopia management.

Many children also find contact lenses offer improved vision and comfort for sports and outdoor play.

What are multifocal contact lenses?

Similar to multifocal eyeglasses, multifocal contact lenses are specially designed to correct refractive errors causing blurry vision at near, intermediate and far distances.

Each contact lens contains specific vision zones with the optical power designated for that zone.

Multifocal contact lenses are available as disposable lenses with daily, monthly, bimonthly, lens replacement schedules, depending on the lens design, brand and material.

Consult with your eye doctor to determine which lens replacement schedule is best suited for your child.

Multifocal contact lenses for school

Multifocal contact lenses are often prescribed if a child is farsighted and complaining of headaches, eye strain or eye fatigue— this is usually a sign of a focusing difficulty.

The focusing skills are necessary for maintaining clear vision for an extended period of time, such as when reading, completing homework, using a computer, crafting, etc.

Multifocal contact lenses help to support the focusing muscles in the eyes to improve a child’s focusing ability and visual acuity— making these tasks easier and more enjoyable.

If your child was prescribed multifocal contact lenses to support their focusing skills, your eye doctor will discuss how long your child may require multifocal contact lenses. Some children may require focusing support for just a few years, until they develop greater control over their focusing system, while others may need the additional support for the duration of their school years.

Can multifocal contact lenses correct astigmatism?

Yes.

Multifocal toric contact lenses offer astigmatism correction while providing clear vision at all distances.

These lenses are available in aspheric or concentric designs, with a stabilization system to help keep the astigmatism correction properly positioned on the eye.

Your eye doctor will determine if your child is a good candidate for toric multifocal contact lenses during their contact lens exam, and recommend the best design for their visual needs.

Are multifocal contact lenses suitable for children? 

Yes.

Multifocal contact lenses are not only well received by young eyes, but it also takes little effort to teach children on how to insert, remove, and clean their contact lenses.

Some children can start wearing contact lenses as young as 8 years of age, as long as they can take responsibility and are aware of the hygienic requirements involved in wearing contacts. Most importantly, is the child’s motivation to wear contact lenses.

Depending on your child’s prescription, daily disposable contact lenses may be recommended. These are easy to care for since they simply get disposed of at the end of the day.

Contact an eye doctor near you to learn more about multifocal contact lenses and just how beneficial they can be for children.

SEE RELATED: Contact Lenses and Children: Part 2 Q&A

Benefits of contact lenses for children

Over 90% of children say that they enjoy wearing contact lenses, compared with only 58% of children who report that they prefer glasses.

There are a number of ways in which contact lenses can benefit a child, these include:

• 86% of children say that they feel better participating in sports when wearing contact lenses
• 80% of parents agree that contact lenses increased their child’s self-confidence
• 30% of parents find that glasses impact their children’s enjoyment of sports
• The risk of glasses-related eye injuries during sports is eliminated
• Contact lenses provide a more ‘natural vision’ and are more comfortable, especially for high prescriptions
• Slower myopia progression stabilizes the child’s prescription

Multifocal lenses for myopia management

Myopia occurs when the light bent by the eye lens forms an image in front of the retina instead of directly on the retina. This happens when the eyeball is too long from front to back, leading to excessive distance between the lens and the retina.

As the eyeball grows until it reaches its adult size at around age 20, this distance increases and shortsightedness worsens.

What causes the eyeball to grow? 

Researchers attribute a phenomenon called peripheral retinal defocus as one of the causes. Multifocal contact lenses focus light correctly across all areas on your retina thus reducing or even eliminating the peripheral retinal defocus.

Slowing down, or perhaps even stopping, the myopia worsening is a treatment program known as Myopia Management.

In this process the optometrist may prescribe multifocal lenses with a center-distance design. In this design the center of the contact lens enables the wearer to focus on distant objects which appear blurry to a nearsighted person, while the outer rings place near objects into focus.

Which myopia management treatment is best? 

Your optometrist will examine your child’s eyes to get an overall picture of their eye health, the severity of myopia and any other conditions that may be present.

After the thorough evaluation the eye doctor will discuss the range of alternatives available for your child’s myopia management, these also include ortho-k lenses, multifocal glasses or contact lenses or atropine eye drops. Together with your child, you can decide on the best solution.

Patient experiences

“The eye doctor recommended multifocal contact lenses for my 8-year-old son. His vision has significantly improved. His prescription has remained the same now for almost 2 years.”

Carly M.

“I used to have to get my child stronger glasses every 4 to 6 months! We couldn’t keep up and it was affecting her ability to function at school. For three years she was fitted with multifocal contacts and her prescription has barely changed. She feels confident and comfortable at school.” 

Matt S.

LEARN MORE: Guide to Children’s Eye Exams

If you are concerned about your child’s worsening myopia, contact an eye doctor near you to schedule an appointment, they can provide you with information on the best options to benefit your child.

The post Multifocal Contact Lenses for Children  appeared first on Optometrists.org.

Children’s eyes can weaken and lenses become stronger, but should I be concerned?

Every year parents buy their children clothing without blinking twice. They just know their children have outgrown their clothing, needing a new pair of pants and certainly new shoes. Well, this also applies to prescription glasses, as while a child grows, so do their eyes.

If you are concerned about your child’s eyes  visit your eye doctor for an eye exam.

The Find an Eye Doctor directory provides a list of eye doctors near you that can conduct eye exams which can help diagnose and treat your child’s myopia.

SEE RELATED: Myopia Management FAQs

Changes in children’s eyes

Babies are born with eyes about 16.5 millimeters in length. Eyes stop getting longer at the age of 20 and 21 – getting to be about 24 millimeters long.

The way eyes refract light onto the retina can change as the eye grows, making it necessary for a new prescription.

Should I be worried about myopia?  

If a child’s eyes grow too long, they develop nearsightedness – myopia.

Children whose myopia develops quickly, and/or is moderate to severe, are at a heightened risk of developing retinal diseases and other sight-threatening eye diseases in adulthood.

During a child’s first few years, they are mainly concerned with interacting with their surroundings, requiring them to use their far and intermediate vision.

When a child begins school they begin to focus more intently on interacting with computers and reading books. As a result their eyes may become more myopic (nearsighted) as a result of coping with the amount of close-vision that is required.

Progressive myopia

Progressive myopia may impact school-age children as their myopia can continue to worsen throughout their years in school. As a result, every 6-12 months, their glasses prescriptions can change, often dramatically.

As the eyes continue to grow, the progression in myopia continues to grow as long as well. As the eye grows, their prescription will naturally change as well.

Progressive myopia increases the risk of serious sight-threatening eye diseases later in life.

Myopia management

For children with myopia, they will need prescription glasses. While in some children, myopia progression is gradual, in others it may progress quickly, resulting in higher levels of nearsightedness. Their eyeglass prescriptions need to be updated quickly.

An eye doctor may suggest a treatment option known as Myopia Management. This program includes a number of treatment options to try and slow the progression of your child’s myopia. There are currently three types of treatment that can help control myopia.

Ortho-K/Orthokeratology

A specialized custom-fit contact lens called Ortho-k gently reshape the cornea and decrease the rate of myopia progression.

These contact lenses need to be worn overnight, while a child sleeps. The following morning your child can experience clear vision without any need for eyewear, due to the temporary change in the corneal shape.

Multifocal lenses 

Multifocal soft contact lenses offer clear vision at various focal distances.

Scientific evidence has shown that wearing multifocal lenses limits the progression of myopia compared to single vision glasses or contact lenses.

Atropine drops

Atropine eye drops, most commonly used to dilate your pupils during certain eye exams have been found to slow the progression of myopia.

Recent research has shown that a low-dose (0.01%) of atropine eye drops can effectively impede the progression of myopia in children.

The eye drops are meant to be applied at bedtime – over an extended period of time – to reduce myopia progression.

LEARN MORE: Guide to Pediatric Eye Conditions

If you are concerned about your child’s myopia, contact an eye doctor near you to schedule an appointment, they will provide you with information about which myopia management treatment your child will benefit from most.

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