Pediatric Eye Exams
When should you bring your children in for their first eye exam? The answer might surprise you - we see kids 3 years old and up, and it's very important to get a comprehensive eye exam from an eye doctor versus just a screener from a pediatrician or school.
Overview
Kids are very resilient, and also easygoing - they might not realize anything is wrong with their eyes to tell you, or they might not know how to communicate it. Eye doctors are trained to detect hidden conditions that could be holding your child back from doing well in school or socially, and prevent major ailments that would impact them through adulthood.
When to Start
Conditions like an "eye turn" (strabismus) or "lazy eye" (amblyopia) can actually be treated if caught early enough. But once the child is in their teens, prognosis declines significantly. Similarly, manipulating a child's prescription before they reach age 10 can actually help them not need glasses in the future.
What's Different
A pediatric eye exam isn't the typical "1 or 2" - we actually don't need them to speak at all to figure out their prescription! So don't worry if your little one doesn't know their letters or numbers yet, we have ways around it. Kids can also be scared of drops and the air puff - we have ways around that too to make them more comfortable!
What We Look For
A pediatric eye exam focuses on 1) if there's any prescription that needs to be corrected (or left alone) so that the child hopefully grows up not needing glasses, 2) how the eyes work together as a team to make sure there isn't an "eye turn" or "lazy eye", and 3) if there's any eye disease such as cancer, cataracts or glaucoma.