Pediatric Eye Care Edina
70% of a child’s sensory receptors are in their eyes, meaning their capability to see clearly can significantly impact their ability to learn. Young children explore and discover the world around them through their sense of sight. It is vital to schedule regular eye exams for your children as our doctors make sure each child has the necessary visual resources required for their optimal growth and development. While it may seem like a challenging process, our highly skilled doctors incorporate state-of-the-art techniques and technology to provide accurate testing and a fun experience for your child.
The American Optometric Association (AOA) recommends that children have complete eye exams at six months, three years, before the start of first grade, and yearly after that. Establishing a regular schedule with your child’s comprehensive eye exams allow for early diagnosis and treatment of vision problems, injury, and disease. Early detection allows our doctors to treat any issues before your child has difficulty in school due to poor vision, or any permanent damage has been done to the eye(s). Our exams test for visual acuity, eye tracking and focusing skills, nearsightedness, farsightedness, amblyopia, crossed eyes, dyslexia, and color blindness. A child’s eyes can change rapidly as they grow, so catching issues in their early stages are vital to your child’s overall health.
Infant Eye Exams: Birth to 24 Months
Our doctors participate in the InfantSEE program which provides a free eye exam between the ages of 6-12months. In the first few months of life, your baby must learn to focus and move their eyes, resulting in using them together as a team. The visual system develops gradually over this period with the brain learning how to process visual information giving your baby the ability to understand and interact with the world around them. The base of motor development goes hand in hand with the development of eyesight, and proper advancement helps your baby learn hand-eye coordination, and how to crawl and walk.
By six months of age, your baby should be able to see as well as you in terms of focusing ability, color vision, and depth perception. Upon scheduling a comprehensive infant eye exam, our doctors check that your baby is seeing properly and developing on track. To assess the progress of development, our doctors use the following tests:
Our Edina doctors require you to schedule more frequent visits if your infant was born premature or is showing any signs of developmental delay. This will allow our doctors to track your baby’s progress and provide the best care.
Preschool Eye Exams:
Ages 2 to 5
Toddlers and preschoolers experience radical growth in their intellectual and motor skills. However, approximately five to 10% of children this age have vision problems, impacting the development of their fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and perceptual abilities. Children rely on good vision and proper visual processes to read and write, play sports, and participate in creative activities like drawing, painting, or building.
Parents should be on the lookout for any signs of developmental delay because your child will have a better success rate if conditions are treated early on. It may be worthwhile to schedule a visit to our Edina clinic if you notice your child frequently rubbing their eyes, squinting, avoiding activities like puzzles or coloring, or sitting unusually close to the television or reading material.
School-Age Eye Exams:
Ages 6 to 18
When vision problems are left uncorrected or undetected, children and teens can suffer socially, academically, athletically, and personally. If your child is having trouble in school or during after-school activities, that’s usually the first sign of a preexisting eye condition. It can be scary for children to experience problems with focusing, reading, teaming their eyes, and hand-eye coordination, so you may notice they get frustrated easily or have displayed other behavioral changes. It’s important to let your child know that vision abnormalities are normal and that they can be corrected.
Our Edina clinic doctors will test your child’s binocular capabilities, peripheral and color vision, focusing, tracking, and hand-eye coordination, along with basic visual acuity. They will also check the area around the eye and inside it to check for any health conditions or eye diseases.
Children’s Eyeglasses, Contacts, and Other Services
If our doctors find any vision problems with your child, we will present several therapeutic options. These can vary from eyeglasses or contact lenses, an eye patch, or vision therapy, depending on the condition. Our Edina eye clinic prioritizes diagnosing any eye or vision issues as early as possible. Most are easier to treat when caught early on while the eyes are still developing.
By following the guidelines for children’s eye exams and learning how to identify signs of vision problems in your child, you can help your child read their healthy vision potential. To better assist you and your child in your eyecare experience, our office partners with an assortment of insurance companies such as Medica, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Humana, and many more.
Edina Location & Doctors
We are excited to bring you a team of exceptionally skilled doctors that provide each patient with unforgettable optical expertise and care. We guarantee that every patient will have a remarkable experience accompanied by an in-depth educational experience regarding their optical conditions. Our award-winning doctors establish lasting relationships with each patient, so they’re informed and receptive in every visit. With clarity and comfort, Art of Optiks guarantees an unforgettable customer experience every time.
Our office is spread between two locations that provide a variety of services to our patients. Our doctors, Timothy Haupert and Victoria Whitman, are located at offices in Wayzata and Edina, Minnesota. Art of Optiks also offers Vision Therapy at our Edina location, which is utilized to improve the quality and efficiency of vision in patients of all ages.
