Q & A with Your Houston Eye Doctors
Vision Therapy (VT), also known as Optometric Vision Therapy or Visual Training, aims to strengthen the visual system and enhance visual and ocular performance. Vision therapy can prevent the onset and progression of many vision-related learning problems.
Now that we’ve defined the basics of this treatment, you probably have more questions about what vision therapy is and what it can and cannot accomplish. Read on for a clear explanation from our Houston eye doctors.
Is Vision Therapy Testing the same as vision screening?
Parents will frequently ask us why their child needs vision therapy testing if he or she passed the vision screening test in school. These tests are not the same. Routine vision testing in school checks only basic visual acuity, and it is generally performed by a school nurse – not by a qualified eye care professional. When our Houston eye doctors inspect your child’s eyes, we inspect visual acuity, eye health, and all parts of functional vision. Even if your child has perfect 20/20 eyesight, vision therapy testing can uncover a condition that may interfere with learning.
Does Vision Therapy involve wearing prescription glasses?
If your child is diagnosed with nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism, your Houston eye doctor will prescribe eyeglasses or contact glasses to provide sharp sight. However, prescription eyewear will not resolve vision conditions such as convergence insufficiency, poor eye teaming, convergence excess, poor eye-hand coordination, and trouble with accommodation (focusing). All of these disorders require treatment with personalized vision therapy exercises.
What happens in a Vision Therapy session at our Houston, TX eye care centers?
We will use various tools and instruments that are custom-made for vision therapy, such as prisms, lenses, beads or balls on a string, wands, and specialized charts. All of these techniques strengthen and develop different parts of the brain and eye muscles that coordinate together for smooth functioning of the visual system.
In addition to the exercises done in every VT session, your child will need to practice assigned homework exercises at home. Cooperation and parental encouragement are essential towards the success of vision therapy treatment.
A trained vision therapist will design and administer all of your child’s sessions, which are generally 45 minutes long. Within a few months of starting VT, kids typically show improvement.
Does vision therapy help dyslexia?
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Academy of Ophthalmology, scientific studies do not support vision therapy as a way to treat dyslexia. That’s because dyslexia is a problem with language, not with sight.
Why is there so much confusion about whether vision therapy can help dyslexia? Many problems with learning are related to vision; on the surface a child with a vision disorder may demonstrate the same difficulties that can be caused by dyslexia. For example, convergence insufficiency (CI) is a vision condition in which eyes do not team smoothly. Because the eyes do not work together well, it can be hard to learn to read and write. Letters and numbers may jump around or appear all mixed up. Dyslexia can lead to the same visual experience and make it hard for a child to read, however, it is not due to a vision problem. For dyslexia, reading therapy is a more appropriate treatment than vision therapy, as it helps kids to understand basic phonics and how letters are pictures of sounds.
If your child is having trouble reading or learning, do not assume that it is dyslexia. A vision disorder may be to blame. It is critical to visit our Houston eye doctors for a comprehensive pediatric eye exam. If we identify a problem with eye tracking, eye teaming, or any other skill related to the visual system, we will recommend vision therapy.
Who provides professional vision therapy near me?
At Eye Trends, our Houston optometrists perform comprehensive vision therapy testing to identify the problem and customize VT sessions to match your child’s needs. Our therapists are highly qualified and experienced; call to book your child’s eye exam and consultation.