During routine exams, Dr. Wasserman checks the health of the eyes.
RALEIGH -- According to the American Optometric Association, one in 10 children have eye problems that go undetected. Doctors say the longer a vision problem persists, the more permanent damage can be done.
Small children can't communicate problems themselves which makes parental observations all the more crucial when it comes to your child's eye health.
Daniel Smith is learning karate just as quickly as the other students but, unlike most of the kids in his class, Daniel wears glasses.
“When he was about 18 months or so, we noticed it,” explained his dad, Russell Smith. “One of the eyes was pulling in.”
According to the American Optometric Association, one in 10 children have eye problems that go undetected.
Daniel has a condition called strabismus, where his eyes turn in, so he's worn glasses since about age two.
“He got used to them quickly, and now he wants to have them on,” said his mom, Brooke Smith.
Luckily, the Smiths were very observant and caught Daniel's problem early on. Pediatricians say parents play a vital role in their children’s eye health.
“A lot of it is having parents work with us to see if they notice problems,” said Dr. Brad Wasserman of Oberlin Road Pediatrics. “Parents may notice the child is squinting if they're looking at things far away or they may get notes home from the school.”
Daniel Smith wears glasses due to a condition called strabismus.
On any given day, Dr. Wasserman's office is filled with children of all ages and he says eye care starts from birth.
“Whether the kids can start to track their parents’ faces, whether they recognize their faces,” he added.
During routine exams, Dr. Wasserman checks the health of the eyes. “I was also looking to make sure when I shine the lights in their eyes that their pupils constricted and dilated,” he explained.
Then, starting at age three, the pediatrician does a visual assessment with an eye chart.
“The goal is to make sure as the kids gets older that we are catching any visual changes that do occur,” Dr. Wasserman said.
He added that early intervention is the key. “Then we can preserve a child's vision the best we can.”
So for children like Daniel Smith, whose dad also dealt with strabismus, there's never a question of participation.
“Just like when I was a kid, I did everything all the other kids did, played in the woods, ran around, etc.,” Russell Smith said.
“Some kids that we've seen in our practice, after they got glasses, after it was recognized that they had vision problems, became totally different kids,” Dr. Wasserman added.
Another line of defense in keeping a check on children's eyesight is in the schools. In North Carolina, every kindergartner's eyes are checked as they enter the public school system. Then, each school system chooses additional grades to screen children again. If any problems or concerns arise, a school nurse re-evaluates the child and parents are then notified.