As with all aspects of your child’s development, eyesight is an area which should be monitored and treated if necessary. We have found that pre-school eye examinations can catch issues early on. The earlier they are caught, the better the treatment we can offer, and the better quality of life for your child. To that end we have developed our eye care services for children. Our services are often recommended by local GPs.
There are various treatments to help children with reading difficulties, one of which is the use of coloured overlays.
We understand that children and their parents can be very concerned about the eye examination and the possible outcome of it. We have a very patient, friendly approach to children’s eyecare. Years of experience have taught us how to put patients of all ages at ease and we are often praised for our ability to do that. Children’s eye exams are tailored to each child’s needs and ability. We have the latest technology and can use this to make the eye exam feel like a game. We will give the parent a full explanation of our findings and discuss with them the best future management of their child’s eyes.
Unlike Dyslexia, which is a distinct neurobiological difference and for which there is no quick fix, the effects of Visual Stress can often be easily and inexpensively remedied by the use of coloured overlays or lenses. However, although colour can often be the key, not any colour will do. For each child there is a specific hue (tint) and saturation (depth of colour) that will work best, so it is important that a sufficiently wide selection of colours is provided so that everybody’s needs are met. In some cases children requiring a deeper saturation double up two overlays of the same colour to achieve the desired effect.
In some cases, the use of tinted lenses may be preferable to intervention with coloured overlays. For example, overlays may reduce or eliminate the effects of glare on a printed page in a classroom, but the writing on the whiteboard at the front or posters on the wall may still be causing significant problems. In some cases it may be appropriate for coloured lenses to be prescribed, although as children get older they often become increasingly self-conscious about their lenses and may “forget” to wear them.
Overlays and Reading Guides are great for reading printed text but what about reading on a computer screen? Clip-ons and spectacles can be used but why not just tint your screen? Virtual Overlay software allows you to change the colours on your PC at the click of a button. If you are using Word or Excel or other software which uses Windows colours, you can set both the text and background colour to any colour you like.