What to look out for in children?

In children, apart from visible problems with sight, there may be many situations which indicate the presence of an eye defect or disease.

Small children:

Children develop intensively right from birth, their eyesight also acquires its full functions. For the first few weeks, children see the world in black and white. Their eyes slowly begin to make use of their natural ability to accommodate and it is only after a while that they start to see clearly. The muscles holding the eyeball are also stabilising themselves.

This is why children squint during the first period of their lives – this something natural for all children aged up to 4 months who do not suffer from any other pathology. If, however, the eyeballs are not arranged properly after 5 months, then an ophthalmologist should check their sight.

There can be various reasons for a squint, e.g. anisometropia, which is when the difference between the two eyes exceeds 2D. The sooner treatment begins (covering the eye, exercises), the better the effects that can be achieved.

Schoolchildren:

It is usually not until children are of school age that sight defects are detected (near-sightedness, far-sightedness or astigmatism). This is why it is a good idea to test children’s eyesight before they set foot in a classroom.

“These tests are completely painless for children,” says Dr Bożena Grechuta “First the nurse does an autorefractometer test (commonly known as a computer test). Then the young patient goes into the doctor’s surgery. We test the sharpness of the child’s vision (the child reads out the letters or names of animals from a special board) and the position of the eyeballs. Then the nurse applies drops that dilate the pupils and after 40 minutes we repeat the autorefractometer test. Sometimes children are afraid of getting the eyedrops, it doesn’t hurt but can cause unnecessary fear. So before the examination it’s worth having a word with children, preparing them for the visit to the ophthalmologist.

If the child needs them, we have to fit some glasses. Then another short appointment is usually needed, because we fit the glasses without the pupils dilated.”