The ophthalmologist spoke about the signs of visual impairment in children

Problems with vision may be indicated by irritability, anxiety, and decreased academic performance. Olga Popkova, a pediatric ophthalmologist at the SM Clinic for children, told Izvestia about this on February 19.

According to her, the most common disorders that are diagnosed in children are refractive errors: myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), astigmatism. There are also violations of the joint work of the eyes and focusing — strabismus and amblyopia (lazy eye syndrome).

"Vision problems can disguise themselves as other conditions and manifest as irritability, increased excitability, restlessness, and fatigue. Sometimes parents notice a sudden drop in school performance. Children may become anxious, cry more often, and get nervous for fear of misreading, answering, or completing a task. The child often begins to switch from one activity to another, not because of boredom, but because his eyes get tired quickly and it is difficult for him to concentrate for a long time," Popkova said.

She noted that parents should be wary if a child avoids activities that require visual effort, gets tired quickly when reading and remembers the text poorly; confuses or skips letters and words, tilts his head or turns it to the side to better examine the subject, complains of headaches, especially after visual stress.

"The most reliable way to preserve vision is regular routine checkups with an ophthalmologist. The examination includes checking visual acuity according to special tables, assessing eye mobility, biomicroscopy (examination of the anterior segment of the eye), ophthalmoscopy to examine the fundus, as well as refraction diagnostics using an autorefractometer and retinoscopy. This allows you to accurately determine the presence of violations and decide whether the child needs correction," the specialist added.

She stressed that when problems are identified, it is important to choose the means of correction as early as possible. Timely prescribed glasses help the child to see and develop fully.

"For children over the age of seven, an alternative is possible — contact correction using soft contact lenses or night orthokeratological hard lenses. Night lenses are worn before bedtime and removed in the morning. Their special feature is their ability to slow down the progression of myopia in children. During sleep, they gently change the shape of the epithelium and the anterior surface of the cornea. The resulting effect persists throughout the day, allowing the child to see well without glasses and lenses, exercise freely and lead an active lifestyle," Popkova advised.

On February 10, Professor, ophthalmic surgeon Igor Aznauryan said that many patients postpone laser correction for years, guided by outdated stereotypes. He noted that the main barrier is psychological in nature: people imagine a difficult and painful operation. According to him, modern technologies have made the procedure as comfortable as possible, and to reduce anxiety, it can be performed under conditions of drug-induced sleep: the patient falls asleep and wakes up with improved eyesight.

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.