by MOSES LEOS III
The future of detecting eyesight issues of very small children is now a possibility, thanks to new technology, which was on display at the 16th annual Wiener Dog festival in Buda.
The local Lions Club hosted free eye exams for children ages six months to five years during the festival. However, instead of subjecting children to familiar examinations, such as the Snellen chart exam, a specialized light and diode device was utilized to quickly examine the children’s eyes.
The exam is entirely non-verbal. As parents sit with their child on their lap, the trained professional sits across from the child holding the handheld “spot machine.” This device emits a series of blinking lights and diodes, as well as sounds, in order to attract the child’s attention.
“It is a combinative target; a stimulus that keeps the kids attention, to get an accurate reading,” optometrist Kevin Benham said.
Benham understands that attempting to obtain feedback from very small children is a near-impossible task. The new technology aids eyesight professionals in finding any eye-related issues.
“When kids are really little, it is hard for them to verbalize what their issues are,” Benham said. “This is a good way to screen children, to find out if they really need help. It takes [out] the subjective-ness from it.”
The examination takes a mere matter of seconds, examining 29 different movements in the eye. According to Buda Lions Club member Mary-Beth Ryan, who has trained with the spot machine, the test also checks for numerous eye maladies, such as myopia (nearsightedness), blurred vision, unequal sightedness, far sightedness, pupil abnormalities, eye misalignment, lazy eye and precursors for blindness.
“(The test) does not tell the degree (of the malady), but it tells the parent whether the child’s eye is perfect, normal for their age range, or they need further examination,” Ryan said. “From that point, they will be directed to go to a health professional. It is a way of diagnosing whether a child has a particular eye issue.”
While the device is expensive – more than $8,000 dollars – the benefit greatly outweighs any cost. The Lions Club, which specializes in helping children with eyesight issues, thought the cost was worth it.
“When these (issues) are checked out early in life, eye physicians can do what they need to do to correct the problem, with medication or patching an eye,” Ryan said. “It is a good way to catch these maladies, from six to 60 months. It helps the parents and community find out which children need corrective help with their eyes.”
Taking part in the examination was festival goer Veronica Cooper, who had her son’s eyes tested. Cooper said the exam was a great benefit, as degenerative eyesight runs in their family.
“When I heard the announcement, I was excited about it, because I wear glasses, my husband wears glasses, so I assumed that my son will, too,” Cooper said.
In addition, the knowledge from this test allows Cooper to potentially give her son a more fulfilling outlook on life.
“I was about 12 years old when I got glasses, and it was like a whole new world opened up,” she said. “I had trouble making friends and doing well in class because I couldn’t see well. If we can find any eyesight issues early on, (my son) will avoid those problems altogether.”
Cooper also lauded the speed of the exam. “To be able to sit there for 30 seconds and have him look at lights and get a measurement is great.”
While the technology is a great tool to help detect early eye issues, both Ryan and Behnam agree that nothing will eliminate the Snellen test or visiting an eye care professional. However, what this advancement in technology does is prevent serious eye maladies from progressing and manifesting in children.
“This does a wonderful job of directing patients to (eye care professionals),” Behnam said. “We learn a lot of things by running this machine for a few seconds. I like it; I will be getting one for my office pretty soon.”
