Child having test of his eyesight for a back-to-school eye exam

Back-to-School Vision Checklist for Parents

by ArticlesBlog

A new school year is right around the corner! As parents go through their child’s school supply list and prepare by shopping for backpacks, notebooks, and new clothes, there’s one important item that often gets overlooked—a comprehensive eye exam.

Did you know that up to 80% of learning is visual? From reading the whiteboard and completing assignments to participating in sports and using classroom technology, healthy vision plays a critical role in your child’s academic success. Ensuring your child can see clearly before the first day of school can make a significant difference in both their confidence and performance.

Make an Annual Eye Exam Part of Your Back-to-School Checklist

Many parents assume that if their child passes a school vision screening, their eyes are healthy. While school screenings can identify some vision concerns, they are not a substitute for a comprehensive eye exam.

A comprehensive eye examination evaluates much more than distance vision. It assesses:

  • Eye health
  • Focusing ability
  • Eye coordination and tracking
  • Depth perception
  • Prescription changes
  • Early signs of eye diseases or other conditions

Children’s vision can change quickly as they grow. Make annual eye exams an important part of maintaining their overall health and academic readiness.

Know the Signs of Vision Problems

Children don’t always realize they’re having trouble seeing because they assume everyone sees the way they do. Instead of complaining about blurry vision, they may develop behaviors that signal an underlying vision issue.

Watch for signs such as:

  • Frequent headaches
  • Squinting or covering one eye
  • Sitting too close to the TV or holding devices very close
  • Difficulty reading or losing their place while reading
  • Rubbing their eyes often
  • Complaints of tired eyes
  • Avoiding reading or homework
  • Declining grades or difficulty concentrating
  • Tilting their head to see better

If your child exhibits any of these symptoms, it’s time to schedule a comprehensive eye exam.

Managing Screen Time in a Digital Classroom

Technology has become an essential part of education. From tablets and laptops to smartphones and gaming devices, children are spending more time than ever looking at digital screens both in and out of the classroom.

While blue light from digital devices hasn’t been proven to cause permanent eye damage, prolonged screen use can contribute to digital eye strain, leaving children with symptoms such as:

  • Dry or irritated eyes
  • Blurred vision
  • Eye fatigue
  • Headaches
  • Difficulty refocusing after using a screen

Tips to Reduce Digital Eye Strain

Help protect your child’s eyes by encouraging healthy screen habits:

  • Follow the 20-20-20 Rule: Every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds.
  • Encourage frequent blinking to keep eyes comfortable and hydrated.
  • Limit recreational screen time when possible.
  • Maintain proper posture and viewing distance from screens.
  • Make outdoor play a daily priority. Spending time outside has been shown to support healthy visual development and may help reduce the progression of nearsightedness in children.

Set Your Child Up for Success

Healthy vision is one of the most important tools your child brings into the classroom. By scheduling an annual comprehensive eye exam, recognizing the warning signs of vision problems, and promoting healthy screen habits, you’re helping your child start the school year with confidence.

As you check off your back-to-school to-do list, don’t forget to schedule your child’s eye exam. Clear vision can make all the difference in helping them learn, grow, and succeed throughout the school year.

Ready for a successful school year? Contact our office at 724-443-6767 or 724-226-0444 today to schedule your child’s comprehensive eye exam and give them the clear vision they need to thrive in the classroom and beyond.

About Bissell Eye Care: John D. Bissell, OD, is the owner of Bissell Eye Care, proudly serving the Northern Pittsburgh and Alle-Kiski Valley regions. Dr. Bissell has received advanced training through the International Academy of Low Vision Specialists, enabling him to help patients living with vision impairment and low vision challenges. With two convenient office locations and evening appointments available, Bissell Eye Care offers comprehensive eye exams for the entire family—starting as young as six months. Our services include ocular disease detection and treatment, prescription eyeglasses and sunglasses, specialty activewear eyewear, contact lenses, and dedicated low vision evaluations for those with significant vision impairment and vision loss. We accept most vision and health insurance plans. To learn more, visit bisselleyecare.com or call our Bakerstown office at 724-443-6767 or our Natrona Heights office at 724-226-0444.

Confident Girl Wearing Glasses Against Eye Chart

Back to School Eye Exams

by Blog

As the 2020–2021 school year begins parents and school districts alike are making decisions on in-person, hybrid, or remote learning.  Regardless of how your children will be learning, this is a great time to schedule your kids’ annual eye exams.

August is Children’s Eye Health and Safety month.  As a good rule of thumb, you should have your children’s eye examined by an eye care professional during their well visits starting around the age of three and also before the start of each school year.  If your children struggle to see, it may inhibit their ability to learn as they head back to school this year.

Pupil dilation is performed to purposefully increase the size of the pupils during an eye exam so that the eye doctors at Bissell Eye Care can fully examine the health of the optic nerve and retina. The exam is critical to preventing and treating eye conditions that could potentially lead to vision loss.

The view to the back of the eye is limited when the pupil is not dilated. When your pupil is small we can see your optic nerve and macula but the view is limited. To see the entire retina, the pupil must be dilated. This is achieved through the use of eye drops.

Comprehensive eye exams look into the back of the eye for overall eye health but are also able to detect things such as:

  • Ptosis (drooping of the eyelid)
  • Color deficiency (color blindness)
  • Amblyopia (lazy eye)
  • Strabismus (cross eyes)

Often children receive a screening at school or through other means that provide parents with a false sense of security.  According to the American Optometric Association, “Parents of children who “pass” a vision screening are often given a false sense that their child’s eyes are healthy, when they may have a serious, undiagnosed eye or vision condition. These screenings provide less than 4% of the information generated during a comprehensive eye exam and they miss up to 75% of children with vision problems. These children are less likely to receive timely treatment for their vision problem, allowing the impairment to become worse and to have a greater impact on their health and development.”

Early detection of vision problems can make a big difference when it comes to your child’s ability to learn.  If they suffer to see, they will more than likely suffer to learn as many people learn by sight.

Keeping your children’s eyes safe is another part of maintaining healthy vision.  Did you know those eye injuries are the leading cause of vision loss in children?  There are a few basic rules that you should follow to help ensure that your child is not one of the 42,000 sports-related eye injuries that occur each year.

  • All children should wear protective eye gear while participating in sports or physical activities.
  • Be sure to purchase age-appropriate toys and avoid those toys which have sharp or pointy edges.

No matter how they are learning this year, give your kids the best chance of success by scheduling a comprehensive eye exam.  Make sure that your children can see clearly.   Protecting their ability to see will help them be successful as they head back to school this year!

About Bissell Eye Care: John D. Bissell, OD owns and operates Bissell Eye Care servicing Northern Pittsburgh and Alle-Kiski Valley regions. With two locations to treat patients, we offer evening and Saturday appointments. Bissell Eye Care provides comprehensive eye examinations for the entire family beginning as early as 6 months, ocular disease detection and treatment, eyeglasses, sunglasses, activewear, contact lenses, and low vision examinations for those with significant vision loss. We accept most types of vision and health insurance plans. For more information, visit bisselleyecare.com or call our Bakerstown Office at 724-443-6767 or Natrona Heights office at 724-226-0444.

Back To School Checklist

by ArticlesBlog

 

Back to school concept with school items and elements. vector banner design

Backpacks, lunch boxes, clothes shopping – it’s back to school time! When you mark off items on your ‘Back-To- School’ checklist, don’t forget to make an eye exam appointment for your child. August is National Children’s Vision Month and the perfect time to talk about the importance of providing the best vision and eye health for your kids. Whether it’s the first time attending preschool or kindergarten or your child’s high school years, it’s important to make eye exams a back-to-school tradition.

Young children with vision problems are unlikely to tell their teachers and parents because they don’t realize the source of the problem. Did you know that 1 in 4 children have an undetected vision problem?

It’s crucial, therefore, for adults to watch the children in our care for symptoms such as:

  • Poor reading comprehension
  • Slow to finish schoolwork
  • Short attention span for close work
  • Tendency to fidget and look away from work
  • Frequent headaches
  • Tendency to cover one eye
  • Frequent blinking or eye-rubbing

According to the American Optometric Association, 49% of parents have not had an eye exam on their children who are under six years of age, by an optometrist. A comprehensive eye exam is different than the eye screenings done by your pediatrician and/or school nurse. The organization also states as much as 80% of a child’s learning happens through his or her eyes. From reading, writing, to using a computer or writing on the blackboard, vision is a necessary component to excelling in school.

An undiagnosed eye problem could result in an academic setback in just a few short months. Some behavior problems could be linked to vision issues. These students may seem uninterested or unfocused in school when in actuality they simply cannot see clearly.

Without an eye exam, many children may have vision problems that remain undiagnosed, and may even be misdiagnosed as having a learning disorder. Especially with young children, learning to read and the ability to track words are the building blocks of their educational experience. The longer a vision problem goes undiagnosed and untreated, the more a child’s brain will learn to accommodate the vision problem. This can lead to poor academics and frustration for all concerned.

At Bissell Eye Care, we look for delayed motor development, frequent eye rubbing, excessive blinking, failure to maintain eye contact, eye tracking skills, and the inability to maintain a gaze. These types of symptoms can affect the child’s ability to concentrate and learn.

Learning is fun. Make sure your child is equipped with the right tools to succeed. To schedule your child’s exam contact our Bakerstown office at 724-443-6767 or the Natrona Heights Office at 724-226-0444.

About Bissell Eye Care: John D. Bissell, OD owns and operates Bissell Eye Care servicing Northern Pittsburgh and Alle-Kiski Valley regions. With two locations to treat patients, we offer evening and Saturday appointments. Bissell Eye Care provides comprehensive eye examinations for the entire family beginning as early as 6 months, ocular disease detection and treatment, eyeglasses, sunglasses, activewear, contact lenses, and low vision examinations for those with significant vision loss. We accept most types of vision and health insurance plans. For more information, visit bisselleyecare.com or call our Bakerstown Office at 724-443-6767 or Natrona Heights office at 724-226-0444.