Did you know that your child could see 20/20 but still have poor vision? Just because your child can see clearly 20 feet away does not mean he/she can visually process information 14 inches away. Many kids are diagnosed as problem learners, attention-deficit, or hyperactive, when actually the culprit is vision-related. Undetected, underlying vision disorders can cause difficulty for children with reading, learning, sports, and attention span.

What Is Vision Therapy?

Vision therapy is a highly effective, non-surgical treatment for many common visual problems such as lazy eye, crossed eyes, double vision, convergence insufficiency, and some reading and learning disabilities. A successful vision therapy program can change how a patient processes or interprets visual information and can also help a patient develop or improve fundamental visual skills and abilities.

What Is Involved In A Vision Therapy Program?

The first step in any vision therapy program is a comprehensive pediatric eye exam. Following a thorough evaluation, a qualified vision care professional can advise the patient as to whether a developmental vision exam should be administered in order to determine if vision therapy would be appropriate treatment.

Vision therapy is a progressive program of vision “exercises" or procedures performed under doctor supervision and has been individualized to fit the visual needs of each patient. Therapy sessions are generally conducted in-office, once or twice weekly for 30 minutes to one hour. In-office therapy sessions are supplemented with procedures done at home between office visits ("homework") and computer software. Progress is monitored by the doctor at in-office sessions, and the patient’s individualized treatment program is adjusted based on improvements made and any continuing deficiencies which require further development.

How Do I Know If Vision Therapy Can Help My Child?

Good vision is more than “20/20.”  There are numerous other important visual skills that children need to in order to be successful in school, such as:

• Acuity: The ability to clearly and comfortably see both near and far as in reading a book or the chalkboard.
• Sustained Focus: The ability to maintain a steady focus for a long time at a close distance, as in reading or writing.
• Eye Movement: The ability to move eyes smoothly and accurately, such as moving from word-to-word or following a thrown ball.
• Eye-Teaming: The ability of the eyes to work together to see one image as in following a line of reading without fatigue, double vision, or headaches.
• Eye-Hand Coordination: The ability to move the hand to what the eyes see, such as handwriting or playing a musical instrument.
• Visual Perception: The process that allows us to understand what we see such as the shape, size, color, or directions of an object, letter, or word.

In other words, an eye chart can't determine how well a child can team or coordinate their eyes at the close distances required for reading, or how well they can track a line of print without losing their place; nor how well they can adapt to focus changes from near to far distances, or how well they can understand and make sense of what they see.  Children can have good visual acuity (20/20) and still have serious problems in these other areas. Below are signs for parents to look for:

• Frequent rubbing or blinking of the eyes
• Tilting the head when reading
• Frequent headaches
• Avoiding close work
• Squinting one or both eyes/covering one eye
• Skipping words when reading
• Short attention span or daydreaming
• Losing their place when reading
• Placing head close to book or desk when reading or writing
• Poor eye-hand coordination skills
• Complaining of nausea or dizziness when reading or writing
• Writing up or downhil
• Difficulty copying from the chalkboard
• Sees worse at the end of the day

Dr. Dunn administers developmental vision exams and can determine if a specific vision therapy program can help your child. If your otherwise bright child exhibits one or more of the symptoms listed above, is struggling in school, or experiencing difficulty with reading and/or comprehension, a comprehensive pediatric vision exam is the first step. Call our office today to schedule an appointment and find out if vision therapy can help your child.

Vision Therapy Links Of Interest To Parents

For more information about vision therapy, check out the following links:

• www.drdaxxdunn.com. Dr. Dunn’s vision therapy related website; in-depth information on vision problems and vision therapy.
• www.covd.org. The home page for the College of Optometrists in Vision Development.
• www.optometrists.org. Excellent site about vision and vision therapy.
• www.childrensvision.com. A great site about visual conditions, vision therapy, and success stories.
• www.children-special-needs.org. A very informative site about children’s vision disorders and vision therapy.
• www.pavevision.org. Parents Active for Vision Education (PAVE), a national nonprofit organization dedicated to informing the public, parents, and teachers about children's vision problems.
• www.vision3D.com. A great interactive site with information on binocular vision and vision therapy.
• www.vision-therapy.com. Lots of good information on vision therapy and success stories.