Does your infant need an eye exam?

Although infants cannot respond verbally, the first year of life is an ideal time to perform their first eye exam. Infants do not yet fear the doctor and the visit is often painless.  It is best to bring in your infant when they are well fed and not during nap time.  This results in better cooperation.  Typically, the infant sits on their parent’s lap during the assessment, the doctor uses lights and  hand-held colorful targets to evaluate the eye focusing, tracking, teaming, and  need for glasses.  To ensure that the back of the eye (retina and optic nerve) are healthy, dilation drops will be placed in the infant’s eyes to dilate them.  Magnifying lenses will be used to look at the internal structures of the eyes.  

A rare tumor called retinoblastoma affects 200-300 infants a year.  If not treated, it can be life threatening.  Treatment involves removal of the eye to protect spread to the brain.  I have seen one case of retinoblastoma.  It is something that I will never forget.  Fortunately, it was caught in time and treated to prevent loss of life.  

We look forward to providing the first visual assessment for your infant. Please contact us at (925) 744-7900 for more information.

To learn more about InfantSEE, call 1(888) 396 – 3937 or visit www.infantsee.org