The
symptoms described above may not necessarily mean
that you have a refractive
disorder. However, if you experience
one or more of these
symptoms, contact your
eye doctor for a complete exam.
In most
cases, refractive error
is easily remedied by
corrective eyeglasses. Eyeglasses enable
children (and adults)
to see more clearly, improving their potential for
academic success and alleviating the social and
behavioral problems that often accompany the
frustration of not being able to see properly.
Without
eyeglasses, children with
refractive error (and other visual
impairments) struggle in school, straining to make
out blurry images on the board,
squinting to see classroom
demonstrations, and falling behind on everyday tasks like
homework.
Even leisure
activities such as playing ball or watching movies present
difficulties that teachers, family, and friends do not
always understand. Frustrated by the inability to see
clearly, a child may “act out”
and be labeled as having a learning or behavior problem.
Poor vision may even lead a
child to drop out of school as a result of chronically poor
academic performance. For a child with a visual impairment,
corrective eyeglasses are as academically essential as
books, papers, and pencils.
Adults whose
childhood visual impairment denied them the opportunity to
obtain core academic skills are at a disadvantage in seeking
employment, achieving economic independence, and making
valuable contributions to their community. Untreated
refractive error may not be life threatening, but they can
be quality-of-life threatening by negatively affecting
academic achievement, social adjustment, and economic
survival.
