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An expert has stressed the importance of children getting their eyesight corrected with kids' contact lenses or glasses at an early age so as to avoid further problems when they are adults.
According to The Vision Center at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, medical studies have shown that, by the time they are three-years-old, about 20 per cent of all premature babies will have developed strabismus (crossed eyes), amblyopia (lazy eye) or a serious refractive error (require glasses).
Dr Natalia Uribe, an optician who directs the clinic's Contact Lens Program, said that such conditions should be corrected as early as possible.
She said: "It is critical that infants and very young children with eye problems have their sight corrected so the visual pathway develops properly."
And Dr Uribe suggests that kids' contact lenses could be the solution for many children.
She said that they can "be a good alternative for school-age children who wear glasses and want to participate in sports or are subject to teasing".
But contact lenses can be expensive, especially for children who may need up to six sets due to the changing nature of their eyesight as they mature.
Specially-designed
Orthokeratology contact lenses can help correct children's sight without the need for glasses or conventional contact lenses.
Ortho kcorrective contact lenses are worn at night. They gently reshape the eye to give corrected vision during the day when they can be taken out.
The night time contact lenses have even been shown to control myopia (short-sightedness) in children by preventing elongation of the eye which causes the condition.
Children's vision: Is your child suitable for
i-GO Contact Lenses?
By Nick Howard
