Child short sighted

[user1475317873]

Hi

I took my children to the optometrist for an eye test; just for a check up not because I had any concerns, apart from mild strabismus for the 6 year old, who happens to be OK; however my 9 year old was found short sighted; I was not expecting it as she says she can see everything properly and does not have any problems at school and has never complain. The lady recommended glasses for school and to watch tv; she said the prescription is very low at the moment. DD does not want to wear glasses; can we wait for awhile? DH has the same problem and did not start wearing glasses until he was 16.

When will she be able to have laser surgery; I had lots of friends back home who have done it, also my sister and it has been great.

[Radyward]

I am an optometrist and I would absolutely not call that prescription extremely low . It will make a significant difference. Ie won't be as tired in the pm after school etc etc. Stop listening to her. She is just a child (in the nicest possible way ) and needs them .
Those night contacts are a major no no. Not proven and were / are used a lot in Asia . Not western Europe so much iykwim..
Honestly pick the coolest pair you can find. Try not to be negative about them to her as she will pick up on this .
In my practice a small (optional)prescription would be of the order of -o.50 sphere taking into account any symptoms of strain or not in whether the person is advised glasses at that stage.
At her age with short sightedness it is going to (generally ) increase quickly ovet the next few yrs then the prescription will settle down. By that token she won't necessarily have thick lenses at age 18 either . Small change then large change every couple of tests iykwim.
She really does need them.

[Scarydinosaurs]

rady sorry I probably put it badly- I just meant comparing it to her father's very high prescription would be over the top. There is nothing to suggest that -1 at 9 means that she is definitely going to be -12 at 18.

[user1484040234]

Her prescription is so low, she is probably fine at the moment. My daughter wasn't keen on glasses (and my sister's prescription got so much worse during her teens, so I did some research); this meant that aged 11 my daughter got night time lenses (ortho-K). Roll on 3 years and her prescription is the same. All her friends who have got glasses over this time period have had progressively worsening short sightedness. I think this is the norm, long sighted children's eyesight may improve but not shortsighted ones.

It is likely that your daughter's eyesight may get worse over the next year or so. If it does and she then finds she needs glasses, you could go down the ortho-K or other night-time lens route. It's not cheap though, £40 a month, but I think it's worth it as there is mounting evidence that it reduces/prevents short sightedness progressing in children.

[user1484040234]

Sorry, to clarify, because of the lenses my daughter's eyesight is better than 20/20 on testing. The strength of her night time contact lenses hasn't changed.

[unlucky83]

DD2 (9) is slightly long sighted (getting less so - cos of DD1 needing regular test she has gone along and had regular eye tests since she was really wee). Optician says that's normal - children get more short sighted as they grow and so slight long sighted when tiny means normal vision as an adult.
I wasn't happy about the 24hr contact lenses but seeing as she was wearing them like that anyway made sense to get them as they could only be less harmful. But as I said it seems the penny has finally dropped and she is taking them out more or less every night now.
(Thinking about it - it was probably related to ADHD - she is oppositional. So being threatened with something (stopping her prescription) makes her less likely to do something, even if that causes her harm. With ADHD they also struggle to see long term consequences ... The optician this time (a different one) said the new lenses were working, her eyes looked much better and then just generally talked about how contact lenses can really damage eyes, infections etc...)

[Penfold007]

DD is shortsighted, it came as a complete shock as DH and I aren't. School nurse first picked it up. Off we went to the optician, eyes tested and cool specs chosen and duly fitted. DD never seemed to have any problems previously but she didn't realise our cat was in fact a tabby and not a solid colour and for the first time she noticed birds flying. Go and get those glasses.

[Karoleann]

I'm also an optometrist and I wouldn't call that prescription low, things will not be clear on the board without them.

Orthok lenses do seem to work well in about 50% of children who try them, but they do take some getting used to. There is also a growing body of evidence that exposure to sunlight helps to prevent against the development of myopia. So plenty of time outside playing may help as will limiting screen time and taking plenty of break when doing intensive close work.

I've fitted children of 8 with contact lenses, so that is an option too, but she doesn't need to wear them full time yet.

I'd start off by getting a decent pair of glasses, she'll see the difference it makes to her vision and then you can explore the other options.

[user1475317873]

I am only catastrophising because DH has 2 more kids who have been wearing glasses permanently since they were 15

[Scarydinosaurs]

So? Plenty of people wear glasses. It really isn't the end of the world. I've worn lenses since 12 and cannot have surgery as my eyesight is too poor. I would check with your dd's teacher regarding her claim no one else wears glasses- I'd be shocked if it turned out to be true.

You need to be really positive and upbeat about the glasses. She needs to wear them.

[dementedpixie]

You see loads of kids these days with glasses. Dd has worn hers since she was 18 months old (was a shock as dh and I didn't wear glasses). She has prescription giggles for swimming. She doesn't look right without them now (she is 13)

[dementedpixie]

P.s, both my children have annual eye tests even though only one has glasses. Just as important as dental check ups imho