There are degrees of visual impairment. Some children may have a slight visual impairment, while others may – God forbid – go blind. You should follow your child’s development in everything from birth, including the development of his visual skills, so that you can discover any problem he has early, as early detection of any problem can eliminate it, or at least reduce the risk of complications in the long term.
To make it easier for you, here are the signs and symptoms of poor eyesight and vision problems in your infant:
- Swollen eyelids.
- Sores on or around the eyelids.
- Drooping eyelids.
- If your child cannot make eye contact with you at three months old.
- If your child cannot see or follow any moving object at three months old.
- Having spasms in his eye movements or having a squint, even if temporarily.
- Lack of coordination between his eye movements.
- One eye drifts when looking at things.
- Tilting his head when looking at things.
- Closing or covering one eye when looking at things.
- Excessive tears when he is not crying.
- Excessive squinting of his eyes.
- Rubbing his eyes a lot or repeatedly.
- The child is sensitive to bright lights.
Signs and symptoms of poor vision in your older child, especially if he or she is in school:
- Difficulty or inability of your child to distinguish colors.
- Difficulty recognizing faces.
- Difficulty seeing objects.
- Difficulty seeing signs.
- If your child can see better during the day than at night.
- If your child sits too close to the TV to watch it.
- If your child always complains of eye strain.
- If your child complains of severe eye strain after studying or reading.
It may be easier to detect signs and symptoms of poor vision during this stage than in the infant stage. If you notice any of these symptoms or your child complains of them, you should consult a specialist doctor.