What is Visual Impairment?
Julian’s Story
When Julian was almost two years old, he developed this adorable habit of closing one eye when he looked at you. It almost seemed as if he were winking. The possibility that Julian had a visual impairment didn’t initially occur to his parents, but when Julian’s right eye started crossing inward toward his nose…
Off they went to the eye doctor, who confirmed that, yes, Julian had a visual impairment--amblyopia, often called “lazy eye.” As the most common cause of vision problems in children, amblyopia is the medical term used when vision in one eye is reduced because that eye and the brain are not working together properly. Julian was also very farsighted, especially in the eye
he’d taken to closing.
Soon Julian had a brand-new pair of durable glasses suited to his active two-year-old self. The eye doctor also put an eye patch over Julian’s better eye, so that he would have to use the weaker eye and strengthen its communication with the brain. Otherwise, the eye doctor said, the brain would begin to ignore the images sent by the weaker eye, resulting in permanent vision problems in that eye.
Julian took good care of his glasses, but he didn’t take well to the patch, unfortunately. He ripped it off every time his parents put it on…and back on… and back on again. So today his eye still turns inward if he doesn’t wear his glasses.
Please click here to continue on to the "documents" section, where you will find relevant documentation regarding visual impairment, including, but not limited to, what visual impairment is and how to identify symptoms.
When Julian was almost two years old, he developed this adorable habit of closing one eye when he looked at you. It almost seemed as if he were winking. The possibility that Julian had a visual impairment didn’t initially occur to his parents, but when Julian’s right eye started crossing inward toward his nose…
Off they went to the eye doctor, who confirmed that, yes, Julian had a visual impairment--amblyopia, often called “lazy eye.” As the most common cause of vision problems in children, amblyopia is the medical term used when vision in one eye is reduced because that eye and the brain are not working together properly. Julian was also very farsighted, especially in the eye
he’d taken to closing.
Soon Julian had a brand-new pair of durable glasses suited to his active two-year-old self. The eye doctor also put an eye patch over Julian’s better eye, so that he would have to use the weaker eye and strengthen its communication with the brain. Otherwise, the eye doctor said, the brain would begin to ignore the images sent by the weaker eye, resulting in permanent vision problems in that eye.
Julian took good care of his glasses, but he didn’t take well to the patch, unfortunately. He ripped it off every time his parents put it on…and back on… and back on again. So today his eye still turns inward if he doesn’t wear his glasses.
Please click here to continue on to the "documents" section, where you will find relevant documentation regarding visual impairment, including, but not limited to, what visual impairment is and how to identify symptoms.