Give The Gift Of Sight Protect Your Child's Eyes Through Prevention And Safety Measures

Prevent Blindness America
Saturday, 1 September 2001

Schaumburg, IL - Prevent Blindness America (PBA) and its network of field offices screened close to 1.5 million children in the past year and nearly 118,000 were referred for eye exams because of possible abnormalities detected during their vision screening. PBA is the nation's largest private children's vision screener and has been a pioneer in this field since the 1920's. In honor of this tradition of service to children, PBA celebrates Children's Eye Health & Safety Month every September as children go back to school.

More than 12.1 million school-age children, or one in four, have some form of vision problem. An estimated one in 20 preschoolers has a vision problem due to amblyopia ("lazy eye"), a serious sight-threatening condition. If left untreated, amblyopia can lead to blindness in the affected eye, but with early detection and treatment, the chance for restoring vision is excellent.

Prevent Blindness America (PBA) recommends that children see an eye doctor, pediatrician, or family physician for a complete eye examination shortly after birth, at 6 months, between the ages of 3 and 5 before entering school, and periodically throughout the school years. Unfortunately, only about 14 percent of children receive comprehensive vision exams before entering school.

Aside from protecting children's vision through screenings and periodic exams, there are many other ways to prevent the loss of sight. Parents should be aware of the risks children face at home and at school. Some common causes of eye injuries in children are misuse of toys or unsafe toys; falls involving furniture, sports-related injuries, misuse of everyday objects that have sharp points; and exposure to harmful household and cleaning products

The U.S. Product Safety Commission estimates that last year, 261,000 product-related eye injuries were treated in U.S. hospital emergency rooms. Children under the age of 5 represented close to 10 percent of this total, and children age 5 to 14, 17 percent of the total. For a wide variety of information on kid's safety issues, toy and product recalls, visit the U.S. Product Safety Commission website at www.cpsc.gov.

PBA offers a wide range of information about children's eye health and safety on their website at www.preventblindness.org. You can also receive one of several handy pamphlets, Play it Safe (HB20), Children's Eye Problems (CB10), and Your Child's Sight (CB20) by calling 1-866-331-2020.

For more information, or to contact Prevent Blindness America, see their website at: www.preventblindness.org