Kansas, Wichita eye doctors offer free vision tests for children
Kansas, Wichita eye doctors offer free vision tests for children
March 9, 3:21 PM
Andi Atwater

March is Save Your Vision Month and Kansas eye experts say the key to good eye health begins with children.

Many eye doctors are backing that up with free vision assessments for all 3-year-old children in Wichita, and around the state.

In children, eyesight problems caught early can make a huge difference in learning ability and success in school.

While as many as 25 percent of school-age children may have vision problems that can affect learning, only 14 percent of them get a comprehensive eye exam before starting school, according to the College of Optometrists in Vision Development. The group says nearly 10 million children have undetected vision problems in the U.S.

“Part of it could be a lack of education,” said Wichita optometrist Julie Toon, president of the Kansas-based Eye Care Council. “You look at dentists, how they drill home that every six months you need your teeth cleaned. I think optometrists have not done a good job of saying you need your eyes examined every year or every two years.”

What works

The Eye Care Council aims to fill that gap in education. Formed in 1991 by the Kansas Optometric Association, the council works to educate the public about the importance of regular preventive vision care and about the warning signs of vision problems.

The Topeka-based group has attracted eye care providers from around country. Perhaps its best known program is the See To Learn program for children, a three-step preventive eye health program designed to ensure children entering kindergarten can see to learn. It educates parents and teachers about the warning signs of vision problems in all school-age children, organizers said.

One way the See To Learn program does that is by providing free vision assessments for all 3-year-old children, regardless of income or insurance status, by a participating Eye Care Council optometrist.

“If we can get these kids in young and catch those vision-related learning problems and prevent some of that, kids are more successful in school, and ultimately more successful in life,” Toon said.

Adults need exams too

Adults should heed eye health as well.

Saving one’s vision isn’t just about protecting the eyes from sunlight, flying debris or other hazardous materials – although that’s important too.

Good eye health optimally starts in the eye doctor’s office, ensuring that a slew of sneaky and harmful diseases won’t get the upper hand on one’s vision.

Many eye diseases and disorders become more common with age. But many problems can be prevented or corrected by catching them early and treating them, eye doctors say.

These include age-related diseases such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, cataracts and diabetic retinopathy.

“One of the things I want to drive home is the need for comprehensive eye exams,” Toon said. “If you read the American Optometric Association guidelines for healthy adults, it recommends an eye exam every two years.”

No laughing matter

Unfortunately, doctors say, not enough Americans take this recommendation seriously.

A Duke University study found, in a random sampling of Medicare beneficiaries during an eight year time period, only 70 percent to 90 percent of those with glaucoma had yearly exams, 65 percent to 80 percent with macular degeneration had them, and only 50 percent to 60 percent of those with diabetes had them.

“One of the things with eyes, people assume that if you don’t have symptoms, why go to the eye doctor,” said physician Kerry Beebe, a Minnesota ophthalmologist who is clinical care chairman of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. “That is so far from the truth.”

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