Children need eye exam before returning to school

July 28, 2010

As the summer begins to wind down, children are fast realizing they'll soon be back behind desks and facing chalk boards. In order to be successful this new school year, kids will need more than just pencils and notebooks - they'll need a good set of eyes.

The American Optometric Association (AOA) conducted a survey of K-12 teachers and found that 81 percent believe that learning is connected to vision. This reason has prompted experts to encourage parents to have their kids undergo an extensive eye exam before returning to the classrooms this fall.

"Healthy vision is critical to learning and excelling in school," Dr Pamela Lowe, the AOA's vision & learning specialist, said. "Comprehensive eye exams should be performed to detect problems like astigmatism, eye coordination and moderate amounts of farsightedness, conditions that can prohibit optimal learning."

The AOA survey also noted that 64 percent of teachers witnessed an improvement in a child's behavior and performance in school after they had a vision problem diagnosed and treated.

Early detection is key in being able treat vision problems in children. The earlier it is diagnosed, the easier it is to treat and correct the issues.