Myopia Control and Children's Eyes
Could my child's school difficulties be a vision problem?
Yes, sometimes. Uncorrected long sightedness, short sightedness, astigmatism, lazy eye or difficulty keeping the eyes working together can all make reading and copying from the board tiring, which looks like inattention or slow progress. An eye examination cannot diagnose a learning difficulty, but it rules out vision as a contributing cause.
Signs worth acting on
- Losing place while reading, skipping words or lines, or using a finger to keep place beyond the expected age
- Avoiding reading, or tiring quickly with near work
- Complaints of headache or sore eyes after school
- Print appearing to move, or occasional doubling
- Copying slowly from the board, or leaving work unfinished
- Closing or covering one eye to read
- Sitting very close to a screen or a book
What might be found
Long sightedness is a common and easily missed cause, because distance vision can be normal while sustained near work is tiring. Astigmatism blurs detail at all distances. A small squint or difficulty holding the eyes together at near can cause words to move or double. Lazy eye in one eye may cause no complaint at all and be found only on testing each eye separately.
What an eye examination cannot do
Vision problems and specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia are separate. Glasses correct focus and comfort, and they can remove a genuine obstacle, but they do not treat dyslexia. Coloured lenses and overlays are sometimes used, and evidence for them is limited. If difficulties continue once vision has been corrected, educational assessment is the right next step.
What to do
Arrange a full eye examination including refraction with drops where indicated, and share any report from the school. Glasses, if needed, should be worn consistently for school work, and the teacher told so seating can be adjusted.
Frequently asked questions
- Will glasses improve my child's reading?
- They remove the effort of focusing, which often helps stamina and comfort. Reading skill itself still develops with practice and teaching.
- Do eye exercises help reading?
- Specific exercises help a small number of children who have difficulty converging the eyes at near. They are not a general treatment for reading difficulty.
Concerned about these symptoms?
Arrange an eye examination with our consultant ophthalmologist in Garki, Abuja.