This week we took the boys in for their first eye exam. We really wouldn’t have thought to do so, but we did for two reasons. On and off we’ve seen Max with one eye slightly out of line with the other. And second, when I went to get my eye exam in October, my doctor (Dr. Dennis Francisco) recommended that even if we suspected no problems at all, that we take both boys in before they are one year old to have their vision tested.
While children used to get their first vision test when they started grade school, the newer thinking is that the sooner problems are detected in a child’s vision, the better the chances of correcting them. In fact, there is a program called InfantSEE that was started just for this reason. Its purpose is to help make people aware of the risks of waiting too long to get an exam.
So, we found a doctor in our area that was certified by the InfantSEE program and took them both in on Friday. Andrew checked out to have roughly 20/20 vision and no known problems. As expected, Max did have some issues. For one, the doctor did verify that his right eye occasionally turns inward. With more examination he was able to determine that his left eye was about 20/20, but his right eye was about a +5, give or take a little. This was the cause of the right eye turning in, because of the extra strain it was under when he tried to focus on objects too close to his face.
So Max is farsighted, and almost exactly to the extent that I am. And I know how bad that is because if I take my glasses off, I can see anything.
The bigger issue is that because one eye is so much better then the other, if he is not treated with vision correction there’s a high likelihood that his one eye will eventually be ignored by the brain, and thus he would have what’s called Amblyopia, also known as a “lazy eye“. Once this happens it’s very difficult to re-train the brain to use both eyes. Not impossible, but a lot harder then just fixing early.
So Max will need to wear glasses very soon. We have an appointment for him on December 8th to get a more accurate assessment of his actual vision, and then fit him with glasses.
We suspect he’ll look something like this…
And on the lighter side…
Before the doctor had entered the room, I captured Max on video being very slap happy with Brenda. It’s hard not to laugh when he’s laughing too.
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