August finds many parents in a flurry of back-to-school activity. But between buying backpacks, pencils, clothes and shoes, you’d be wise to remember something else your child may need: an eye exam.
This month also marks Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month, and it’s a great time to make sure your kids will be seeing the chalkboard or whiteboard or smartboard as well as they should.
“Periodic eye exams are an important part of any child’s routine health care,” said Dr. Michael Wehmann of St. Elizabeth Physicians Ophthalmology Fort Thomas.
“The visual system is not fully mature at birth, and many children are able to function well even with developing problems in one eye. These can go unnoticed at times.”
When should my child have an eye exam?
The American Optometric Association recommends children have their first eye exams at around six months, again at three years, before entering first grade (six years) and every two years thereafter. Children considered at risk for eye or vision problem, including prematurity and/or low birth weight or a family history of congenital cataracts or retinoblastoma, should be tested more frequently.
“If some problems are not identified and treated at a young age, the vision in one eye can develop poorly and never reach its full potential for vision in life,” Dr. Wehmann said. “This is called amblyopia, and it is commonly associated with a crossed or ‘lazy’ eye; however, sometimes the eyes can appear totally normal to parents and pediatricians.
“A full pediatric eye exam can identify a child’s previously unnoticed refractive error and give them better vision as they grow during the important years of early reading and interacting with people.”
When scheduling an eye exam, it’s important to remember there are different professional practitioners.
- Ophthalmologists are medical doctors who specialize in eye and vision care and complete eight years of medical training after college. Ophthalmologists diagnose and treat diseases of the eye and can prescribe medicines and perform surgeries.
- Optometrists provide primary vision care, including eye testing, and diagnose, treat and manage changes in vision. Optometrists are doctors of optometry, not medical doctors; their practices focus on eye and vision testing, prescribing and selling corrective lenses, and prescribing some medications.
- Opticians focus on corrective lenses, eyeglasses and contacts. They do not test vision or write prescriptions, or diagnose eye diseases.
St. Elizabeth Physicians offers ophthalmology services at four locations:
- Downtown Cincinnati: 105 West Fourth Street, Suite 719
- Covington: 1500 James Simpson Jr. Way, Suite 302
- Florence: 7370 Turfway Road, Suite 300
- Fort Thomas: 40 North Grand
