Vision health is critical to a child’s academic success, so in addition to shopping for clothes and supplies for the upcoming school year, some families are headed to the optometrist. If children can’t see clearly, they’re more likely to struggle in school.
One of the most common pediatric vision problems is myopia — commonly referred to as nearsightedness. Kids with myopia often struggle to see things far away, such as the classroom blackboard. If a child has never seen clearly, they may not know their vision could be different until they go to school and spend time around other kids, noted Allegheny Health Network optometrist Dr. Sarah Zambotti.
“When they’re about to play sports or are playing out in the yard, they may want to refrain from that because they can’t see that well,” said Zambotti.
Other signs of myopia include kids squinting at things that are far away, rubbing their eyes, having headaches, or holding books and devices close to their faces.
Children with nearsightedness are occasionally misdiagnosed with behavior issues, said Dr. Jaclyn Waddell, an optometrist at O’Rourke Vision Care in Pleasant Hills: “It makes sense that the little kid is getting up out of his chair constantly because he's getting up to go to the board to see what is up there because he just couldn't read it.”
Myopia is caused by the elongation of the eyeball from front to back. As kids grow, so do their eyes. Common treatments to prevent the eyes from growing longer include drops or contact lenses.
“The possibility of glaucoma, accelerated cataract, retinal detachment to retinal tears, and at the worst, accelerated age-related macular degeneration — like in your 40s rather than your 70s — become a real problem,” said Dr. Ken Nischal, head of the division of pediatric ophthalmology at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.
