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As many families begin to prepare for a new school year, one item needs to be at the top of everyone’s to-do list—children’s eye health and safety. The next few weeks leading up to the back-to-school season offer parents and caregivers an opportunity to make that eye exam appointment and start thinking about eye safety for children. Earlier this week, Prevent Blindness launched its August Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month initiative offering resources for parents, eyecare providers and allied health professionals on children’s vision issues, including web pages, printable fact sheets, videos from experts and patients, and social media graphics. VMAIL Weekend sat down with several ECPs and industry experts to talk about starting the school year off right when it comes to children’s eyes.
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Preventing Eye Injuries
While refractive errors like myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), and astigmatism are the most common vision problems in children, often leading to blurred vision, other considerations also include the potential for eye injury brought on by household or outdoor triggers, said Stacy A. Lyons, OD, FAAO, and advisory committee member of the National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health (NCCVEH) at Prevent Blindness. Projectile toys, sports balls, and everyday objects can result in serious eye trauma, including scratched corneas, blunt trauma, or more severe internal damage, she said.
“For any sport involving a ball, stick, or potential for impact, children should wear sports goggles or glasses specifically designed for impact resistance. Regular eyeglasses and contact lenses do not offer adequate protection,” Dr. Lyons said, adding that parents should look for eyewear that meets the safety criteria for the particular sport the child is playing.
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| Stacy A. Lyons, OD, FAAO. | |
In addition to sports, she said chemical splashes from household cleaners and craft supplies are also a common cause of eye injuries, often leading to burns or irritation.
UV light is also playing a greater role in children’s vision health safety, as prolonged and unprotected exposure to the sun’s UV rays and the blue light emitted from digital devices can contribute to long-term eye health issues, such as cataracts and macular degeneration, later in life, she warned.
“Children should wear sunglasses that block 99 to 100 percent of both UVA and UVB rays whenever they are outdoors, even on cloudy days. A wide-brimmed hat can provide additional protection,” Dr. Lyons said.
For many children, UV damage is no longer just a result of sun exposure—extended screen time on digital devices can lead to symptoms like dry eyes, headaches, blurred vision, and eye fatigue in children, impacting their comfort and potentially their visual development.
Myopia is also taking center stage as a growing threat to children’s vision health, with more children being diagnosed each year. Dr. Lyons said the increase in myopia cases is often linked to environmental factors, such as increased screen time and less time spent outdoors in natural light. “The significant increase in screen time among children, particularly with tablets, smartphones, and computers, is a growing concern,” she said, noting that in Asia and some European countries, more eyecare providers are using red light therapy to reduce myopia progression. However, this treatment is not currently being administered in the U.S.
With fall approaching, she reminds eyecare providers to keep their patients informed about the misuse of costume contact lenses, often purchased without a prescription. These lenses can lead to eye infections, corneal ulcers, and even permanent vision loss, said Dr. Lyons who believes overall education is the key to preventing eye injuries in children.
Safety Eyewear
Dr. Andrea Thau, owner of Dr. Andrea Thau and Associates in New York City, is a past president of the American Optometric Association and an associate clinical professor emerita from the SUNY College of Optometry. She noted some of the most common eye “injuries” associated with sports and recreational activities are corneal abrasion caused by fingers or balls, blunt trauma from collisions or sports equipment, foreign bodies in the eye, or conjunctivitis. Dr. Thau said she is also seeing increased eye strain and dryness in children due to prolonged screen time.
When it comes to mitigating the risk of eye injury, Dr. Thau believes that the best protection is prevention. “It is important to educate parents and children about eye injury risks and issues and the strategies to protect their eye health and vision at home, school, and during sports or play,” she said, noting that doctors should talk to parents about sport-specific, impact-resistant protective eyewear.
She advised that all children who are participating in outdoor activities need to reduce the potential for eye damage from UV radiation and blue light by not looking directly into the sun and wearing sunglasses and/or clear prescription lenses or brimmed hats when outdoors.
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| Donna Fishman. | |
“Children are spending more and more time on ‘near work’ and play, such as reading and extensive use of digital devices that are positioned close to the face which may lead to difficulty seeing distant objects clearly,” she noted. “At the same time, less time spent outdoors translates into less use of the child’s distance vision. With increased use of tablets, smartphones, and computers for both school and play, we’re seeing more cases of eye fatigue, headaches, blurred vision, and even early signs of myopia.”
Dr. Thau believes while health professionals are learning more about the effects of concussions, eyecare professionals are only just beginning to understand the impact on children’s vision. She noted that children with concussions can have longer recovery times and poorer outcomes than adults. “If a child has a concussion, parents should consult with their general practitioner and make sure to schedule a comprehensive eye exam with their doctor of optometry to confirm that visual capacity has not been affected,” she said.
Spotting Vision Disorders
There is a growing concern about the lack of the public’s awareness about vision disorders and how they can impact a child’s ability to meet developmental milestones, engage socially, achieve academic success, and enjoy lifelong well-being, according to Donna Fishman, the director of the NCCVEH at Prevent Blindness.
“Parents, teachers, and all those who work with children need to know the signs of possible vision disorders so they can be observant and help children receive eye examinations and treatment when necessary,” she said. “Children don’t know what they can’t see, and often the adults in their lives don’t know their children can’t see. As vision advocates, it is the role and the mission of Prevent Blindness to educate the public and make it easy to find resources to overcome barriers to eyecare.”
Fishman echoed Dr. Lyons’ concern about the uptick in myopia cases. “We know that myopia is a huge concern due to lack of outdoor time and increased screen time on electronic devices, as well as family history. Untreated and more severe myopia can cause vision impairment both in childhood and later in life,” she said.
Schools and families can help by reducing children’s screen time for non-mandatory schoolwork and creating opportunities for children to spend time outdoors.
“Safe play outside for at least one hour per day would be a great advantage for overall health and vision health specifically. Having children’s vision screened by the primary care provider as well as in schools and community settings, and making and keeping eye doctor appointments, are critical to making sure a child receives glasses or other needed treatments,” she said, Eyecare providers can work with parents to help them understand the signs of possible vision disorders so they are familiar with the symptoms of vision problems, she advised.
On the playground, Fishman said Prevent Blindness welcomes the growing trend in organized sport programs that incorporates eye safety into their sport equipment requirements, however, there are still more than 40,000 sport-related eye injuries each year, she said.
To promote eye safety in sports, she said parents and coaches have a role to play in making sure safety eyewear is an expected and natural part of the uniform, kids understand how to use the eye safety gear correctly, and that the eyewear meets the ASTM F803 and ANSI Z87.1 standards.
Additionally, Fishman said that children who wear regular glasses should not use them during sports play but should get a pair of prescription safety glasses for sports use.
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| Jeff Todd. | |
To help eyecare providers provide their patients with effective risk reduction strategies and treatment plans, the NCCVEH at Prevent Blindness Small Steps for Big Vision eye health toolkit offers parents more than 40 downloadable resources, including a scripted presentation in English and Spanish to use when educating parents of preschool-age children. The organization has also compiled a list of resources offering parents financial assistance to purchase safety eyewear.
Jeff Todd, president and CEO of Prevent Blindness, agrees that one of the greatest challenges in preventing eye injuries in children is a lack of awareness.
“Many parents may not realize the potential risks present in everyday activities, such as playing sports or activities in the home. Raising awareness and providing education on how to protect children’s eyes in all settings is a critical first step,” he said. Another challenge is providing access to proper protective gear—some families may not have the resources to obtain high-quality, impact-resistant eye protection.
Todd said that current Prevent Blindness data indicates that basketball has the highest
number of eye injuries and it is important to remember that different activities may require different sorts of eye protection.
Resistance to wearing eye protection can be a challenge for parents and eyecare providers. Todd recommends they should talk with their children about why wearing eye protection consistently is important, especially when playing sports.
“Help them understand the ‘why’ behind the protective gear,” he said. Mitigating the risk of some eye injuries begins with children receiving the appropriate vision screenings and eye exams. “Poor vision can increase the likelihood of accidents that lead to eye injuries,” he concluded.
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