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Pediatric Vision and Eye Health Exams

pediatric eye care is important for learning

Eye Exams for Children

Coleman Vision along with The American Optometric Association recommends that pre-school children receive a complete vision and eye health exam at the ages of six months, three years and five years. It is particularly important that a child have a complete evaluation in the summer prior to entry into Kindergarten. While in school, yearly evaluations are recommended. If learning or functional performance issues are a concern, additional developmental testing may also be recommended (NVPA, see below).

pediatric eye exams

Testing Beyond the Traditional 20/20 Eye Exam

20/20 simply means that the person can clearly see a certain letter on the standard eye chart (equivalent to what a person with normal vision should be able to see at 20 feet). There’s so much more to healthy and efficient vision than 20/20!

Our comprehensive vision exam goes beyond 20/20 to evaluate many important visual skills, such as:

  • Visual Acuity at Near
    Is vision clear and single at close distances? Clear sight at short distances is critical to reading, writing, close work, computer use, etc.
  • Eye Teaming Skills
    Do the two eyes aim, move, and work as a coordinated team? Weaknesses in binocular (two-eyed) vision and eye teaming skills can cause numerous difficulties, including convergence insufficiency and poor depth perception.
  • Eye Focusing Skills
    Do the eyes maintain clear vision at varying distances? Rapid, automatic eye focus adjustment is critical to learning, reading, writing, sports, etc. Deficiencies can cause visual fatigue, reduced reading comprehension, and/or avoidance of close work or other activities.
  • Eye Movement Skills
    Do eye movements show adequate muscle control, tracking, fixation, etc.? In the classroom, normal eye movements allow rapid and accurate shifting of the eyes along a line of print or from book to desk to board, etc. In sports, efficient eye movements contribute to eye-hand coordination, visual reaction time, and accurate tracking.

Above are just a few of the many visual skills evaluated during our comprehensive vision exam. In addition, the health of your eyes, inside and out, is carefully evaluated for such problems as cataracts, glaucoma, hypertension, diabetes, etc.


Neuro-Visual Performance Analysis

What is a Neuro-Visual Performance Analysis (NVPA) and consult?

The NVPA is comprised of a series of tests that are designed to identify strengths or weaknesses in the areas of visual motor integration, visual processing, auditory analysis screening, tracking and gross motor screening.   Depending on age and reading ability of the patient, testing on the Visagraph II Computerized Eye Movement Recording may be given. This instrument uses goggles with infrared optics to test reading efficiency (number of fixations, regressions and other characteristics of eye movement during reading). NVPA testing is done in our Therapy Center by one of our therapy staff.

The time required for the NVPA is usually 1-1/2 hours and is given by our therapy staff on a one-one basis with the patient.  Parents are asked to observe the testing and a video discussing vision and learning.  At the completion of this testing, scores will be tabulated and then presented at a consultation  (scheduled at a different time) with your doctor, the patient and/or the parents.  Treatment options will be discussed and a written summary report will be provided at the consultation. If additional evaluation is necessary, the doctor will inform you of this need and fee.

Since the NVPA & Consultation appointments take a significant amount of time, we truly appreciate your adhering to our policy regarding missed appointments or last minute cancellations.

When scheduling, please make sure that this appointment does not conflict with any other appointments that you may have on that day.  We require 24 hours notification of canceling the NVPA appointment so that we have sufficient time to fill your canceled time with other patients on our waiting list.  There will be a $100 charge for patient no-shows or canceling a NVPA appointment less than 24 hours of the appointment time.  Any charges incurred by the patient for the missed appointment are the responsibility of the patient.

We do not accept assignment on any medical insurance plans so payment for testing is due the day of service.  Please be aware that many insurance companies do not pay for this NVPA/consultation or may just pay a small portion of the testing and we can assist you with paperwork you will need for reimbursement.

To cancel or reschedule a NVPA appointment, or if there are extraordinary circumstances regarding your appointment, please call our front desk receptionist as soon as possible.

Do you treat or diagnose learning problems, disabilities, dyslexia?

We thoroughly evaluate the visual system as it often can affect a person's ability to learn.  For example, these types of problems could cause difficulties in reading (losing place, skipping words, blurriness, headaches, fatigue, tired eyes, etc.), or writing (difficulty with coloring, staying on the line), or in sports.  Even if the patient can see well, there may be other significant visual problems hindering one’s ability to learn.