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Identifying Vision Problems in Children
Early diagnosis and treatment is critical in minimizing the effects of a vision disorder, yet children are too young to let you know that something's not right with their eyes. Following are some warning signs to look for, and while the presence of one or more of these does not necessarily indicate that there is a specific problem, parents should look for changes in their children's eyes and let their pediatrician know about any of these symptoms.
For babies:
- Chronic redness in the eye
- One eye moves and the other doesn't
- One eye doesn't open
- Persistent rubbing
- A bulge in the eye
- A drooping eyelid
- Squinting
- Tilted head when looking at things
- Eyes don't follow a toy moving from side to side in front of the child
For preschoolers:
- Looks cross-eyed, or eyes don't work in unison
- Closes one eye while reading or examining an object
- Tilted head when looking at things
- Rubs eyes when not sleepy
- Excessive tear production
- Overly sensitive to light
- Has white, grayish-white or yellow colored material in the pupil of the eye
- Bulging eyes
- Redness in eyes that doesn't abate in a few days, sometimes accompanied by pain or light sensitivity
For school-age children:
- Holds books very close when reading
- Squinting
- Recurrent headaches
- Complaints of achy, tired eyes
- Eyes don't seem to work in unison
- Eyes appear to be cross-eyed
- Double vision
- Any change in appearance of eyes
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Valid AAA membership required. Discount off tag price. Valid on multiple pairs. Frame and lenses purchase with valid prescription required. Valid at participating LensCrafters, Pearle Vision, Sears Optical and Target Optical locations. Contact lens purchase requires valid contact lens prescription. Cannot be combined with any other offer, previous purchases, or vision and insurance plans. Some restrictions apply. Some brands excluded. See store for details. Void where prohibited. Valid at participating locations. The Sears trademark is registered and used under license from Sears Brands LLC. Target Optical® is a registered mark of Target Brands, Inc. used under license.
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In children of all ages, be alert if flash photography consistently shows an unusual whitish spot in the pupil instead of the typical "red eye." This can be a sign of retinoblastoma, a malignant tumor on the retina that is highly curable if detected early.
Scheduling regular eye exams is the best way to identify vision problems, helping to ensure that all eye disorders are detected and treated early. So schedule an eye exam for your child today with your eye care professional.