Your child’s optimum visual health is essential to ensure their proper learning and social growth. Since their eyes are not yet fully developed, they are more likely to develop eye conditions. Through proper awareness of these common eye diseases, we can prevent them from interfering with your child’s quality of life.

Eye Conditions

For your understanding, your  trusted pediatric optometrist in Three Rivers, MI, from Southwest Vision Center discusses five common eye conditions in children.

1. Conjunctivitis (Pink Eye)

The conjunctiva pertains to the clear, mucous membrane that lines the white part of your eye and the inner surface of the eyelids. Pink eye happens when this becomes infected or inflamed. Since this condition is usually contagious, we advise practicing proper hygiene at all times. We may also prescribe medicated eye drops to control the infection.

2. Amblyopia (Lazy Eye)

When your child’s eyes do not coordinate well with each other, you may have this condition. This leads to two different images sent to the brain, which in turn may cause confusion. As a remedy, your brain tends to ignore signals from the weaker eye, leading to its visual impairment. To help your brain acknowledge the weaker eye’s signals, we may recommend wearing an eye patch for a certain period.

3. Strabismus (Crossed Eyes)

This happens when one eye looks at an object while the other eye looks in another direction. Your expert children’s eye doctor in Granger, IN, may recommend wearing corrective eyeglasses to remedy this alignment problem.

4. Myopia (Nearsightedness)

When your child has an elongated eyeball or overly curved cornea, light may focus in front of the retina instead of directly on top of it. While your near vision may remain intact, you may experience difficulties seeing distant objects. For this, you might have to wear concave lenses. Their shape helps bend light rays directly on the retina.

5. Hyperopia (Farsightedness)

When you have a short eyeball or less curved cornea, light may focus at the back of the retina, instead of on top of it. You may see nearby objects as blurred, yet distant objects seem clear. We may prescribe wearing convex lenses to correct this condition. Their shape causes the light rays to merge and focus on the retina.

The most effective tool to prevent these conditions in your children is regular eye visits with our doctors. As early as 6 months old, we recommend having them undergo a baseline eye exam in Edwardsburg, MI.

Call us at (269) 414-4492 (Edwardsburg) or (269) 273-8588 (Three Rivers) so we can get started maintaining your child’s eyesight.

Operating Hours

 Edwardsburg

9:00am – 6:00pm Monday
8:00am – 5:00pm Tuesday – Thursday
8:00am – 1:00pm  Friday
Closed Saturday & Sunday

Three Rivers
9:00am – 6:00pm Monday
8:00am – 5:00pm Tuesday – Thursday
8:00am – 1:00pm Friday
Closed Saturday & Sunday

Dowagiac
8:00am – 5:00pm Monday
9:00am – 6:00pm Tuesday
8:00am – 5:00pm Wednesday
8:00am – 5:00pm Thursday
8:00am – 1:00pm Friday
Closed Saturday & Sunday