Pediatrics

With the approach of the school year, Prevent Blindness America (PBA) has declared August as Children's Eye Health and Safety Awareness month, and is encouraging parents to ?make sure every child takes the test that may help them pass all the rest.?

Many children, returning to school this fall, will lack the tools that can help them perform at their optimal level: a professional eye exam and glasses, if necessary.

In an effort to assess and address the vision-related effects of the increased use of technology in learning environments, the American Optometric Association (AOA) has conducted a survey and released a report.

A $495,000 grant from the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) will help researchers at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center further research an eye drop that one day could be used to prevent diabetic retinopathy (DR).

Bausch + Lomb (B + L) is partnering with Mom Central Consulting (www.momcentralconsulting.com) to deliver tips to help mothers have basic ?daily talks? with their children about issues that may affect self-confidence, including the wearing of eyeglasses.

Prevent Blindness America (PBA) has launched its Most Beautiful Eyes contest, offering children from across the United States the chance to become the face of the PBA Star Pupils program in 2012 and win a $25,000 scholarship.

A new episode of VSP Vision Care?s EyeFiles Webisode series highlights ways to protect children from computer vision syndrome (CVS) and offers tips on how to combat digital eyestrain.

Topical anesthesia strabismus surgery for adjustable sutures has advantages, but surgical techniques need to be modified and patients chosen carefully.

It's important to understand this simple phrase: Pediatrics is different.

Six hours of occlusive therapy and treatment with atropine can be beneficial to children with severe amblyopia.

An important advance for enhancing the ease and safety of pediatric cataract surgery is 1.8mm coaxial microincision cataract surgery using a particular phaco platform, according to one expert.

Use of IOLs during first year of life remains controversial. Currently, implanting IOLs in infants is an off-label use of these lenses.

John T. Flynn, MD, credits those who have contributed to the understanding of retinopathy of prematurity in the past, are currently active, and whose work is laying the groundwork for future breakthroughts.

Twice-daily dosing of bepostastine besilate ophthalmic solution 1.5% was found to be safe, with minimal adverse events, in a randomized, double-masked, 6-week safety study including two groups of healthy pediatric patients.

From babies to toddlers to pre-teens, there are many important considerations to implement when you are dispensing to kids. These considerations range from toddler eyes that are sensitive to ultraviolet rays to protective eyewear for your budding athlete.

Healthy vision is vital for success in life and should begin with regular vision screenings during childhood, but the level of inadequate vision care for children in the United States is significant, however. The author addresses ways to address this issue to positively affect high school graduation rates, social and emotional problems, juvenile delinquency, adult literacy problems, incarcerations, and workforce quality and productivity.

No scientific evidence supports the view that subtle eye or visual problems cause learning disabilities, according to a revised policy statement on learning disabilities, dyslexia, and vision issued by the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Surgeons should review the new discoveries in orbital anatomy and consider expanding their surgical armamentarium to include surgery of the pulley system says one ophthalmologist.

Parents of children with amblyopia may have several reasons (or excuses) for not following a prescribed patching regimen. Ophthalmologists who are following the Pediatric Eye Disease Investigator Group guidelines but are not achieving the desired results, should first examine whether patients are adhering to the prescribed therapy.

The adequate management of posterior uveitis in children is difficult but imperative. Many treatment options exist, but to determine the best one for patients, it may be best to divide them into two groups at least initially: those with unilateral disease and those with bilateral disease. Treatment decisions then will follow, based on the severity of the disease.

Children with convergence insufficiency improved significantly more with office-based treatment plus home reinforcement compared with home-based or placebo office therapy, according to a study published in the October issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.

Significant changes in cylindrical measurements were observed following unilateral horizontal strabismus surgery in a retrospective study. In addition, investigators found clinically significant changes in a large number of operated eyes as well as a portion of control eyes.

Asking young athletes key questions during the eye exam or at the dispensing table can enable eye-care professionals to recommend the appropriate protective eyewear for children involved in sports.

Clinicians who have been wary of fitting younger children with soft contact lenses may want to consider findings from a three-year study of myopic progression.

A new pediatric patient can be more easily oriented into a practice with games, movies, and comfortable seating in the waiting room. Specialized equipment like fixation targets with small puppets placed on the end of the transmitter make the exam more like play time. Breaking the ice by talking to the child about his or her interests and joking will also help make a better experience for the child.