Pediatric Eye Exams: Know What to Expect

Your child's first eye exam is probably at their general pediatrician. Pediatricians conduct a simple vision screening on your child while they are still infants. They assess for any specific developmental challenges with simple diagnostic techniques and tools. However, this screening is not a substitute for a comprehensive pediatric eye exam. 

According to experts, infants should have their first comprehensive eye exam when they are about six months old. By this time, their visual abilities have developed enough for an exam. After, they should have a second eye exam with a pediatric eye doctor when they turn about a year old and then before they turn three. 

The Discussion

When you take your child to the pediatric eye doctor, they will ask you several questions. You will talk about the birth process of your child and whether there were any complications during the pregnancy and the birth. The birth weight will also come up, to know whether your child was born at full term. You will also discuss your child's medical history.

All these will help the eye doctor gain a clear picture of your child's health. Sometimes, complications during pregnancy and birth may affect your child's eye health. Also, some medical conditions they may have had can predispose them to develop eye issues. 

What to Expect During the Infants Eye Test

From six months old to two years, the pediatric eye doctor tests for basic eye skills like focusing, depth perception, and color vision. As your child gets older than six months old, the tests become more complex because their visual structures are also developing quickly. Here are some of the tests the eye doctor will perform:

• Responsiveness of the Pupils

In this test, the eye doctor will use a light to test the reactiveness of your child's pupil. They measure how fast or slow your child's eye adapts to the presence of light.

• Fixation and Tracking

Also known as fixate and follow, this test measures your child's ability to fixate on an object and follow it. Fixation is one of the first visual abilities that a child develops, usually during the first months after birth. However, the ability to follow an object develops at about three months. 

• Preferential Looking

Despite the complex name, this test usually measures normal visual ability. The eye doctor will use unique cards to capture your child's attention. The cards are stripped on one side and blank on the other to grab your child's attention.

What to Expect in Your Preschool Child's Eye Exam

Once your child gets to two years old, his/her visual system is well developed. The pediatric eye doctor can test for more complex issues affecting your child's vision. Most of these will usually start to develop at about this age. The most common problems they will usually test for are:

• Lazy Eye

Also known as amblyopia, this condition usually affects one eye, making it weaker than the other. It is also closely related to strabismus or crossed eyes. If undiagnosed, these can lead to worse symptoms that affect your child's quality of life.

• Convergence Insufficiency

This condition affects close-range vision, causing double or blurred vision. It will often interfere with reading and schoolwork.

For more on pediatric eye exams, visit Primary Vision Care at one of our several our offices in Ohio. Call (740) 299-1155 for Newark, (740) 654-9909 for Lancaster, (740) 393-6010 for Mount Vernon, (937) 382-4933 for Wilmington, or (513) 897-2211 for Waynesville.