What is Paediatric Ophthalmology?

Paediatric ophthalmology is a subspecialty of ophthalmology that concentrates on treating the various eye problems affecting children. Studies show that a lot of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and learning issues in children can be attributed to vision problems.

Paediatric Ophthalmology - Problems affecting our little people

Research shows that 1 out of 6 kids has vision related issues. Some of the most common issues affecting the little ones include:

It is essential to address and rectify the issues in newborns as soon as possible. If not treated within the first six months of the child’s birth, there’s a good possibility that the child gets visually impaired for the rest of his/her life. The reason being, the optic nerve connecting the eyes to the brain is still developing and if any prevalent disease is not treated on time, there could be a permanent disconnect between the eyes and brain, eventually leading to total blindness.

Paediatric Ophthalmology

Routine comprehensive eye checks should be an essential part of your child’s healthcare regime. While problems like squint or drooping of eyelids can be easily noticed, finding issues related to lazy eye & refractive errors could be quite a challenge to the parents. Especially because most kids do not report the problem to their parents for often they lack the ability to understand that there’s been a change in their visual skills. It, therefore, becomes the primary responsibility of parents to notice any change in their kids’ behavioural pattern like watching TV from a close distance or excessively straining to read from a book or performing badly at school all of a sudden.

If any of these ring a bell, then it’s time to meet a paediatric ophthalmologist and clarify on your kid’s eye health.