Tech Use Taking Toll On Kids' Eyes

Doctor: School vision exams don't catch everything

AUSTIN (KXAN.com) - One-in-four school-aged children have vision problems that can affect learning. But often, children and parents don't have a clue there's anything wrong.
Between buying school supplies, school lunches and new clothes, parents have their hands full getting kids ready to head back to class.

But there's one more thing that can start them off on the right foot.

"It's really imperative that all children receive a comprehensive vision exam before they start school," said Dr. Mary McMains.

McMains says school vision screenings only detect about 5 percent of problems and often miss identifying children who have trouble seeing up close.

The National Eye Institute also reports longer stints in front of the computer screen are leading to more eye problems at an earlier age.

"What we're seeing is that we're having more nearsightedness, more complaints of double vision, blurry vision, tired eyes, headaches," McMains said.

When Kirby Youngblood first came to her office, the third grader was experiencing several headaches a day and his school work was suffering.

"You can see there's colored letters that are thicker, erase marks -- I didn't erase very well," Kirby Youngblood said.

After eight months of special vision therapy catered to kids that often looks more like an arcade than a doctor's office, his vision has improved.

"It's like watching your child transition into someone new -- someone you always knew that they were, but something was holding them back," said Sheila Youngblood.

Because most kids don't know there's a problem, there are warning signs to look for.

"Rubbing the eyes, watery red eyes can be a factor or if you notice a child is taking their book and holding it too close and pushing it far away, squinting, turning their heads so that their nose might be blocking one eye because they're having difficulty coordinating both eyes on the page," McCains said.

A good rule of thumb is to be proactive rather than reactive.
Doctors recommend a child's first eye exam be done before they turn age one, then again at age three and another right before schools starts.

Computer Vision Syndrome

Some 100 million American workers are affected by computer eyestrain, a symptom of Computer Vision Syndrome.  March is Eye Safety in the Workplace month, and as our nation has moved from a manufacturing society to an information society, Computer Vision Syndrome has become a workplace concern.  While prolonged computer use will not damage vision, it can make you uncomfortable and decrease productivity.

Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS) is caused by the eyes constantly focusing and refocusing on the characters on a computer screen. These characters don’t have the contrast or well-defined edges like printed words and the eyes’ focus cannot remain fixed.  Symptoms of CVS include headaches, loss of focus, burning or tired eyes, blurred vision and neck or shoulder pain.

CVS can be partially alleviated by changes in the ergonomics of the work area.  Proper lighting and monitor placement can go a long way toward reducing CVS, as can giving your eyes frequent “breaks” from the computer.  But the underlying cause of CVS – the ability of the eyes to focus on the computer screen – may only be remedied by specialized computer glasses.

A comprehensive eye exam, including questions about a person’s computer use habits is the first step.  If we determine that vision correction for computer use is required, we can prescribe computer lenses that are designed to improve your vision in the 18” – 28” range, the optimal distance between your eyes and the computer monitor.

How Close Do You Hold Your Smart Phone?

The explosion of smart phone sales are resulting in many visual complaints.  Reading texts and Internet pages with the phone is often done at much closer distances than reading a book.  The implication is more eye strain, fatigue and headache if this activity is done for longer periods of time.

A recent study published in the American Academy of Optometry indicated lens prescriptions will need to be altered for these problems.  Problems can result because of close reading distances and font sizes associated with the smart phone.

Study Findings
The average font size with a smart phone was comparable to that of newspaper print with text messages.  However Internet page fonts were smaller.  The average reading distance (working distance) with text messages was 36 centimeters and 32 centimeters with Internet page viewing.  This compares to an average of 40 centimeters with book reading.  The difference can result in eyestrain and headaches, especially for those over age 40.

Implications
It is important to let me know if you are having eye strain or headache with smart phone viewing.  If so, I can prescribe lenses which optimize your sight at the distance commonly viewed.  This prescription can be a big help for these types of problems.

--James B. Mayer, O.D., F.C.O.V.D.
     Agape Learning & Optometry Center
     Thousand Oaks, CA