Eye problems in Filipino children

CEBU, Philippines - A few years ago, the Department of Health (DOH) announced that 10 percent of children in grade school have eye problems, many of the cases undetected until the condition had grown bad enough. The statistics could have gotten worse since.

In line with October being "Sight Saving Month," eye problems in children are brought to public attention once again. And the Department of Health may again spearhead an eye inspection among the country's grade-schoolers, as was done in the previous years. While this may 'look' like a minor concern to those who don't have children having eye problems, this is actually a serious matter as bad vision can undermine the quality of life of the affected kids, whose numbers are significant.

An official of the health department had said that of the pupils with eye problems, one-fourth had amblyopia or "lazy eye," and the rest had main error of refraction or EOR. The great prevalence of EOR among children was confirmed in the DOH vision screening in 2014, which reiterated similar findings by the National Survey of Blindness in 2004.

Amplyopia is a condition of abnormal visual development in infancy and in early childhood. The affected eye will not develop normally if not treated before the child reaches age seven, and may even cause blindness.

Globally, uncorrected EOR is the main cause of moderate and severe visual impairment; cataracts remain the leading cause of blindness in middle- and low-income countries, including the Philippines. The major causes of visual impairment are: uncorrected refractive errors like myopia, hyperopia or astigmatism (43%), un-operated cataract (33%) and glaucoma (2%). But 80 percent of all visual impairment can be prevented or cured.

The importance of the campaign for early and thorough visual screening for children is underscored by DOH official Dr. Eric Tayag: "Vision is one of the most important, if not the most important, of our senses.  Most of the information from the outside world is integrated through the visual pathways.  Vision problems can limit the ability of a child to learn as well as interact with other children." Tayag adds that besides the health aspects, "the resulting impairment can have "negative impacts on the child's intellectual and social growth and development."

In general, older people are more at risk of visual impairment. About 65 percent of all people who are visually impaired are aged 50 and older. It is estimated that more people will be at risk of visual impairment due to chronic eye diseases and ageing processes.

Despite the modern, sophisticated technologies and specialized treatments available, a segment of the population continues to experience visual impairment. The challenge that vision specialists face is to assist patients whose eye problems can no longer be cured to learn to cope with the degree of vision that remains. Visual impairment affects people of all ages, but most common in the elderly.

Eye problems in children - given the rate of one in every ten kids suffering an eye problem of one sort or another - is a concern not only for parents but for the government as well. It is a serious concern, as it can predetermine whether the future is bright or dim for the affected children. Thus, it is important for any sign of visual discomfort in a growing child to be brought at once to the attention of a qualified eye professional. (FREEMAN)