Child needs glasses?

Hi,

I have a son who is 6 years old. He recently had his eyes tested at
Boots Opticians (UK) and had the following reading:

Right:
-Sph: +0.50
-Cyl: DS
Left:
-Sph: +0.50
-Cyl: DS

The optician was adamant that he needs glasses. I'm suspicious of Boots
Opticians because I have had pressure from them in the past to change
my glasses for a very marginal change in my eyesight. Needless to say
the ones that suited me cost £200.

My son doesn't want glasses (to put it mildly) and I have no doubt that
if we do get him glasses they will rapidly be 'lost' or broken - I'd
give them a life expectancy of less than one day.

I have read that if a child does not show symptoms such as constant
headaches and blurry vision, they should not be prescribed glasses and
that, anyway, almost all children have low-grade long-sightedness,
which they grow out of at about age 8-10.

I have also read that children below the age of l0 should have their
pupils widened with eye drops before being tested: the optician did not
do this.

My inclination is to hold off and have him tested again in a year or
two.

I'd appreciate any comments.

Regards

Emmett

Dear Emmett,

I am not a "doctor", but a
from the study of primate
eyes, refractive states
from zero to plus 1.5 diopters
are normal.

There might be some
"reason" for this "prescription",
but the OD should give you a
COMPLETE explanation.

Just my opinion.

Otis

Dear Emmett,

Subject: The second-opinion

The ODs on this site will provide their opinion -- shortly.

I would suggest holding off on getting the glasses.

I would strongly suggest that you personally
check your child's vision under your control.

(You have nothing to lose by doing this.)

You will find two eye charts on my site:

www.myopiafree.com

For that checking. I suspect
his distant vision is close to 20/40 or
better.

The ODs on this site don't like me providing
a layman's opinion. But I always suggest
that you be provided with a competent
second opinion.

Best,

Otis

Dear Otis,

Thanks for the feedback. I'll check him on your charts.

Regards

Emmett

(E-Mail Removed) wrote:
> Dear Otis,
>
> Thanks for the feedback. I'll check him on your charts.
>
> Regards
>
> Emmett

According to Otis Brown, engineer, wearing plus lenses can prevent
myopia from developing.

DrG

Dear Emmett,

Subject: Child with refractive status of +1/2 diopter and
(potentially) 20/20 vision.

I also suggest you obtain a WRITTEN description
of WHY your child is being put into a +1/2 diopter lens.

Once you are clear on the REASONS, the
some further discussion would be in order.

The REASONS are far more important that
the use of any lens -- at this point.

Best,

Otis

Robert, that's silly. Any optometrist can also rule-out amblyopia, and
there are far more of them than pediatric ophthalmologists. Where do
you live?

DrG

DrG/Robert,

I live near London, where there is every sort of specialist going, so I
am sure that it's possible to find a pediatric ophthalmologist if need
be. It would be time-consuming and expensive though: specialists do not
come cheap in London.

Regards

Emmett

I agree that the over-use of specialists contributes to the high cost
of healthcare. However, you have socialized medicine. If the GP
thinks you need to see a specialist it may cost you nothing.

Here in the U.S., optometrists are extremely well-trained, especially
in the diagnosis of amblyopia. Children half the age of your son are
regularly seen in my practice. Despite the well-meaning(or not so
well-intentioned) comments of Mr. Kopp and others, most of us do not
check our ethics at the door when we come to work each day. What Mr.
Kopp and others fail to mention is that pediatric ophthalmologists also
make a living....from surgery and treatments for -- and I bet you saw
this coming -- amblyopia. Some of them even own dispensaries and sell
(gasp) eyeglasses. I could tell some very interesting stories.

DrG

On 28 Oct 2005 05:52:45 -0700, (E-Mail Removed) wrote:

>Hi,
>
>I have a son who is 6 years old. He recently had his eyes tested at
>Boots Opticians (UK) and had the following reading:
>
>Right:
>-Sph: +0.50
>-Cyl: DS
>Left:
>-Sph: +0.50
>-Cyl: DS
>
>The optician was adamant that he needs glasses. I'm suspicious of Boots
>Opticians because I have had pressure from them in the past to change
>my glasses for a very marginal change in my eyesight. Needless to say
>the ones that suited me cost £200.
>
>My son doesn't want glasses (to put it mildly) and I have no doubt that
>if we do get him glasses they will rapidly be 'lost' or broken - I'd
>give them a life expectancy of less than one day.
>
>I have read that if a child does not show symptoms such as constant
>headaches and blurry vision, they should not be prescribed glasses and
>that, anyway, almost all children have low-grade long-sightedness,
>which they grow out of at about age 8-10.
>
>I have also read that children below the age of l0 should have their
>pupils widened with eye drops before being tested: the optician did not
>do this.
>
>My inclination is to hold off and have him tested again in a year or
>two.
>
>I'd appreciate any comments.

When my children were small, they are now 24 and 27, there was a
programme on television, one of the Watchdog type of things, which
investigated opticians and their over prescribing of glasses to
children. Just after seeing the programme, I took my son to an
optician and was told he needed glasses. I then took him to a smaller
non chain optician who said that was rubbish. So I'd say avoid the
optician chains and go for one of the little independents.

Ann