August 5, 2008

• New students, preschoolers benefit most

• Common and serious eye problems can be caught

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Don't wait until children say they are having vision problems, said optometrists at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). Parents, teachers and other adults should be on the lookout for student eye woes: squinting, headaches and learning troubles.

UAB Eye Care doctors recommend comprehensive eye exams especially for children entering preschool and kindergarten.

Comprehensive vision care in young children may affect much more than their ability to see. Without a comprehensive eye exam by an optometrist or ophthalmologist many children have vision problems that go undiagnosed, and may even be misdiagnosed as a learning disorder.

"Children with vision disorders may struggle unnecessarily with reading or avoid reading altogether," said Kristine Hopkins, O.D., M.P.H., chief of vision therapy at UAB. "An early comprehensive eye exam evaluates a child's vision, eye teaming skills and tracking skills as well as eye health."

An eye exam will help spot common problems such as nearsightedness, farsightedness and find more serious conditions such as amblyopia, or ‘lazy eye.' Treatments are available for amblyopia, and it's preventable if caught within the first few years of life. Lack of early eye care has helped make amblyopia the leading cause of blindness in Americans under age 40, said the American Optometric Association.

The back-to-school season is an ideal time for parents to take their child to eye doctor for a comprehensive exam, Hopkins said.

UAB Eye Care is open to the public as a multidisciplinary clinic with both optometrists and ophthalmologists providing exams and total eye care.