Pediatric Eye Care

Your pediatrician will do basic screenings to help identify vision problems. However, parents are often the first to notice that something isn’t right. There are several things to look for.

First, if you have a family history of eye disorders – like a lazy eye at an early age – you might want to proactively see a pediatric eye specialist.

In very young kids, toddlers and even babies, look for physical signs of eye trouble. That includes eye rubbing, squinting, tripping down steps and having trouble with depth perception. If you notice an eye drifting, or eyes not tracking together, that would also be an issue of concern.

For older children, make sure you’re asking questions. Can they see the board clearly in class? Do they see double? Are they getting headaches? Academic struggles can be a symptom of poor vision.

No. Our optometrists, orthoptists and ophthalmologists have specialized training and techniques for examining preverbal and nonverbal kids. We use things like fixation toys, videos and special equipment to get an accurate exam. It's an art and a science. But kids absolutely do not need to know their letters and numbers before being able to get an eye exam.

No. Our team does routine vision exams, glasses prescriptions and contact lens fittings, among many other things. Surgery is reserved for correcting misalignment or issues like pediatric glaucoma, pediatric retinal disorders and detachments, pediatric corneal issues and pediatric cataracts.

Early identification and treatment of vision issues is important because visual development and brain development are closely linked in a child’s early years.

“We're not necessarily looking at eyes, we're looking at their brain in those first years,” says pediatric ophthalmologist Emily Broxterman, MD. She explains that when a child can’t see clearly out of one eye, the brain just ignores it completely. That causes the vision in that eye to lag even further. Even if it is eventually corrected with glasses, it’s not enough to catch the eye up. Instead, patching and more intensive treatment may be required.

“There's not a hard and fast rule, but around age 7 to 9 is when that brain-eye connection fully develops,” says Dr. Broxterman. “It's important to catch all these things and do patching and glasses and all the treatments before then so they have the best vision potential they can get.”

To start, you will see a technician or orthoptist. They will take a health history and do some tests for the vision assessment. Then they will dilate the child’s eyes. Dilation is important because it allows the ophthalmologist or optometrist to look at the back of the eye. The eye doctor will also use lights and a retinoscope to help determine a glasses prescription if needed.

We have each of these positions on our pediatric eye care team.

An orthoptist is like a physician assistant to a pediatric ophthalmologist. You will typically see an orthoptist at the start of the exam. Our orthoptist, Tori Rausch, has additional training in treating amblyopia and strabismus.

An optometrist provides frontline care for vision and medical eye issues by conducting exams as well as prescribing glasses and contact lenses. Dr. Jamie Weiser, our optometrist, has additional specialization in working with medically complex children with behavior challenges and/or developmental disabilities. An ophthalmologist has medical training allowing them to perform surgery in addition to the kinds of care an optometrist can provide.