Children & Young Adults
We only get one pair of eyes..
It is never too early to have your child’s eyes tested. It is well known that child with vision issues may experience development challenges. Some of these may be identified early with regular eye tests, giving your child the best start.
Specialist Training
PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATE IN PAEDIATRIC EYECARE
Specialist professional training allowing us to assess the vision of children from age 2.5 years and upwards.
Some things to look for
You should make sure your child has a full eye examination if:
Your child has special needs- children with special needs often have eye problems
There is a history of a squint or lazy eye in your child’s family
People in the family needed to wear glasses when they were children.
Common Symptons
- One eye turns in or out- this may be easier to spot when the child is tired
- They rub their eyes a lot
- They have watery eyes
- They are clumsy or have poor hand and eye co-ordination
- AYour child avoids reading, writing or drawing
- They screw up their eyes or frown when they read or watch TV
- They sit very close to the TV, or hold books or phones close to their face
- They have behaviour or concentration problems at school
- They don’t do as well at school as they should
- They complain about blurred or double vision or they have unexplained headaches.
Concerns or questions?
Carmel is a specialist in testing and identifying eye conditions in children from age 2.5 yrs . Please contact the practice if you wish to discuss an eye examination for your child.
Please contact the practice if you wish to discuss an eye examination or follow up for your child.
We offer also specialist assessment for visual stress, which can impact many children
What to expect
We understand that you may be concerned about your childs vision. We use age appropriate tests and have the skills to measure your childs vision.
- Measure their vision with easily recognisable pictures or letters
- Measure the strength of their eyes (we often put drops in to get an accurate measurement in the younger years)
- Measure for any sign of squint or lazy eye
- Check the health of their eyes
- Discuss our findings with you and decide on a management plan
Common Conditions
Some more details on the most common conditions
Lazy eye or amblyopia may be caused if a young child needs very strong glasses, has one eye that is significantly more short-sighted or long-sighted than the other, or has a squint (where the eyes are not looking in the same direction). This means that the sight in the affected eye or eyes does not develop properly.
This impact 2-3% of children and the earlier that this is identified, the more treatment options are available to correct the issue.
A squint occurs when your eyes don’t point in the same direction. The most common type of squint is where one eye turns slightly inwards, towards your nose. Sometimes the eye may turn out or – very occasionally –up or down, while the other looks ahead. This can happen in either eye. If a young child has a squint it is important that they are examined by an optometrist to help prevent the eye that does not look straight from becoming lazy.
If you are short-sighted you have problems seeing things in the distance clearly, but can see things that are close. There are varying degrees of short-sightedness.
Around a third of people in the UK are short-sighted. The condition usually starts during primary school years and tends to worsen until the eye has stopped growing. Myopia can also develop in very young children. Adults may also become short-sighted. You are more likely to become short sighted if your parents are also short sighted.
Normally, light is focussed by the cornea and lens to form a sharp image on the retina. Long-sightedness occurs when the eyeball is slightly too short so that the focus point is behind the retina at the back of the eye. If you are long-sighted, you find it more difficult to see clearly objects that are close to you. For example, words on a page or your phone screen may seem blurred.
Read More