It is a fact that a child’s vision can change as they get older and their eyes grow, so it’s important to get your child’s eyes examined regularly. If you notice any of the following common vision problems in your child, make an appointment with an eye specialist right away. For that, Dr David Stager will discuss some of the common vision problems that your child may experience.
Accommodative Dysfunction
Accommodative dysfunction refers to a common vision problem that occurs when your eye does not focus properly on objects at different distances. Such a condition can cause blurry vision, double vision, and headaches.
So if your child complains of eyestrain or headaches after reading or doing any other activities that require focusing close up (such as drawing), then he may have accommodative dysfunction. If his eyes look crossed when they’re looking at something far away, he also may have this eye condition.
Amblyopia (Lazy Eye)
Amblyopia, also known as the lazy eye, is where one of your eyes doesn’t work as well as the other. For example, when you look at an object with your dominant eye (the one used for everyday tasks like reading), it might be blurry or out of focus.
But if you cover up your non-dominant eye and use only your dominant one, things appear clear again. Amblyopia develops when there’s a difference between how much light enters each eye through their lenses (known as refractive error).
Color Blindness
Color blindness, or color vision deficiency, is not an eye disease, but rather an inherited trait that affects the cones in your retina. This eye condition occurs when one or more types of these cone cells don’t work properly causing difficulty distinguishing between certain colors like reds versus greens or blues versus purples.
Convergence Insufficiency
Lastly, convergence insufficiency is caused by an inability to coordinate eye movements correctly, which can lead to double vision, headaches, and fatigue when reading or doing other close-up tasks. This eye condition occurs when the eyes fail to converge (move together) properly while focusing on near objects such as books or computer screens.
