|
Infants, Toddlers, and
Children
|
|
Examination |
Interval |
|
Patient Age |
Risk Free |
At
Risk* |
|
Birth
to 24 months |
At 6
months of age |
By 6
months of age or as recommended |
|
2 to 5
years |
At 3
years of age |
At 3
years of age or as recommended |
|
6 to
18 years |
Before
first grade and every two years thereafter |
Annually or as recommended |
Infants
Infants are born with underdeveloped visual systems.
Your child's vision will grow and develop throughout the first years
of life.
Preschool Children
During preschool years, children will fine-tune their
visual system. It is important to detect vision problems during this
stage that may delay development if not corrected.
School-Age Children
If a child shows signs of struggling at school, and
undetected vision problem may be to blame. Warning signs include
squinting, tilting the head, sitting too close to the television,
losing place while reading, covering one eye to read or watch
television, excessive tearing, rubbing eyes, finger pointing when
reading, light sensitivity or frequent headaches.
*Pediatric
Risk Factors
-
Prematurity, low
birth weight, oxygen at birth, grade III or IV intraventricular
hemorrhage
-
Family history
of retinoblastoma, congenital cataracts, or metabolic or genetic
disease
-
Infection of
mother during pregnancy (e.g., rubella, toxoplasmosis, venereal
disease, herpes, cytomegalovirus, or AIDS)
-
Difficult or
assisted labor, which may be associated with fetal distress or
low Apgar scores
-
High refractive
error
-
Strabismus
-
Anisometropia
-
Known or
suspected central nervous system dysfunction evidenced by
developmental delay, cerebral palsy, dysmorphic features,
seizures, or hydrocephalus
Adults
Eye examinations are
an important part of overall health maintenance for adults over 18
years of age. Identification of vision problems can often alert to
other health related issues.
|
|
Examination |
Interval |
|
Patient |
Risk Free |
At Risk** |
|
19 to 60 years |
Every two years |
Every one to two years or as recommended |
|
61 and older |
Annually |
Annually or as recommended |
**Adult
Risk Factors
-
Diabetes,
hypertension, or a family history of ocular disease (e.g.,
glaucoma, macular degeneration)
-
Working in
occupations that are highly demanding visually or eye hazardous
-
Taking
prescription or nonprescription drugs with ocular side effects
-
Wearing contact
lenses
-
Have had eye
surgery
-
Other health
concerns or conditions.
Source:
American Optometric Association and About.com (Vision)
 |