Eye Care is as Important to Children as Yearly Checkups

Pasadena Eye Associates is proud to offer friendly, professional service to children, teens, and adults of all ages. Our staff recognizes the value of personal care when it comes to managing eye health throughout life. In honor of Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month, we want to focus on the particulars of pediatric eye care, and why it is so important for healthy development.

Did you know?

From the time a baby is born, there is little, if any, a question about the need for routine pediatric care. Parents may be provided with a very clear outline of when their baby needs to see the doctor, and for what. We don’t often hear about eye exams at this time in life, but we should.

A baby is ready for her first eye exam by the time she reaches six months of age. That’s right! At this time, the eyes have reached a developmental stage in which more than the boldest red and black can be seen, and objects farther in the distance can be observed. An eye exam at six months sets the stage for the earliest possible intervention of eye or vision problems.

What could be wrong with the eye so early? The first eye exam may reveal a degree of laziness in one eye. This condition known as the lazy eye is amblyopia. It indicates that the muscles around one eye are stronger than those around the other eye. In most cases, this problem is very treatable. The placement of an eye patch over the stronger eye promotes the development of the other. The years before a child enters school are the best for treating lazy eye not so much because the outcome is better, but because wearing a patch may be easier for a child who doesn’t have to face classmates on a daily basis.

Subsequent eye exams may reveal vision problems such as being nearsighted, farsighted or have astigmatism. Each of these conditions may go undetected without routine exams, and each can create developmental difficulties for children.

Setting up a Lifetime of Eye Health

The initial eye exam is the first of many that will be performed throughout life. A second exam is recommended between 3 and 4 years of age, and yearly exams should be scheduled for school-aged children and teens.

Schedule eye exams for your family before school starts. Call Pasadena Eye Associates at (713) 473-5715.