What you need to know
about Vision Therapy
Unlike other many other kinds of
ailments, children will rarely complain of
vision problems. A child suffering from
visual impairments may never know that
their perception differs from those around
them. This makes it particularly important
to increase the awareness of developmental
vision problems, and help parents to
understand what to look for if they suspect
their child may have problems with his or
her vision.
What is vision therapy?
Some visual conditions cannot be
treated adequately with just glasses,
contact lenses and/or patching, and are
best resolved through a program of Vision
Therapy.
Can my child still have an undetected
vision problem with 20/20 eyesight?
Yes! “20/20” only means the child can
see at distance, but may lack skills needed
for learning such as eye tracking, eye
coordination, and visual perceptual skills.
Can vision therapy help with
learning problems?
The large majority of learning occurs
through our vision. Research has
shown that over 60% of children who
struggle with reading and learning have
undiagnosed vision problems contributing
to their difficulties. These types of
vision problems are often referred to as
“Learning-Related Vision Problems.”
Typically the main symptoms that you
by Dr. Jenna McDermed
will see when a child has a Learning-
Related Vision Problem is poor attention
with schoolwork or reading and difficulty
with comprehension and/or tracking.
For school-age children, in particular,
it is very important that vision problems
be detected and treated. Untreated vision
problems can cause great frustration and
undue stress in what should otherwise be
an exciting period of learning.
Optometric vision therapy does not
treat learning disorders, but does treat
vision problems that can cause attention
and behavioral problems as well as many
learning difficulties. These vision problems
have often been misdiagnosed as AD/HD
or a variety of different learning disorders.
Approximately how many children are
affected by undetected vision problems
that interfere with learning?
One out of four children struggle
with reading and learning because of
undiagnosed vision problems. According
to a conservative estimate from the
American Optometric Association,
“Sixty percent of children with learning
disabilities have undiagnosed vision
problems.”
Does vision therapy cure learning
disorders, such as ADD or dyslexia?
Vision therapy does not treat learning
disorders, such as AD/HD or dyslexia,
but does treat vision problems that cause
attention and behavioral problems as well
as many learning difficulties.
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