Dear Abby Article Raises Awareness

Parents have told me, "Why is it, even when my child has struggled in school and reading, no one has ever suggested to me that there could be these types of vision problems?" Thanks to Dear Abby many parents have had the opportunity to find out about developmental vision problems and how they can effect learning.  The following Dear Abby Column was published on April 17, 2007. Your comments are welcomed.

Dan L. Fortenbacher, O.D.,FCOVD

DAUGHTER'S SCHOOL WOES ARE CAUSED BY DISORDER OF SIGHT

DEAR ABBY: Please help me get the word out about a common condition that severely affects children's ability to succeed in school because it inhibits reading, spelling and concentration.

My daughter, who was obviously bright, tested at first-grade reading level in fifth grade. She had undergone all the school testing for learning disabilities, plus two days of testing at a respected university hospital. None of these tests or specialists revealed what could be wrong with her.

My child's self-esteem suffered. Her confidence faltered; she began acting out in school. At home she was a great kid, until it came time for schoolwork. Then the battles began. She thought she was dumb. When studying, she could read for only a very short time. She often begged me to read things to her. When working on spelling and assigned to rewrite the words she missed five times, she often recopied them wrong. We thought she just wasn't trying.

After much research on the Internet, I came across a disorder called "convergence insufficiency disorder." This visual condition is the leading cause of eyestrain. Fortunately, we had the opportunity to have her tested at the Mayo Clinic, where her condition was confirmed, and she was successfully treated with vision therapy.

It was as though a miracle had occurred. After six months of treatment, my daughter is almost at her age-appropriate reading level. Her comprehension and retention have markedly increased, and her self-esteem and attitude about reading are much better.

Children with this condition will not benefit from tutoring, special education or extra help from teachers until the condition is diagnosed and treated. My child had 20/20 vision and still had this disorder. It's not routinely checked with eye exams, and schools don't test for it.

I suspect that many children out there are undiagnosed or misdiagnosed and going untreated. The treatment for convergence insufficiency disorder is noninvasive, effective, and much of it can be done at home. Please help me get the word out so other families won't have to go through what we experienced. -- ANGIE W. IN MINNESOTA

DEAR ANGIE: I am pleased to help you get the word out to other families whose children are struggling to learn. After reading your letter, I contacted my experts at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and was informed that this problem, where the eyes drift too much inward (or outward) in attempting to focus, can also be present in adults.

The symptoms can include eyestrain, headaches, blurred vision, sleepiness and trouble retaining information when reading. Other symptoms associated with convergence insufficiency include a "pulling" sensation around the eyes, the rubbing or closing of one eye when reading, words seeming to "jump" or "float" across the page, needing to reread the same line of words, frequent loss of place, general inability to concentrate and short attention span.

The good news is: Vision exercises can fix the problem in most cases, some done at home and some performed in-office with a vision therapist. Prism glasses are another option; however, they are more often prescribed for adults with this disorder than for children.

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Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069

Comments

[Linda M. In Littleton CO]

I too have a child with vision problems. Though I did start with a tutoring center for one year with not a lot of progress. After taking him back to the eye doctor, he highly encouraged me to take him the the eye specialist. Though I do not know the name of his diagnosis, he does have a lot of the symptoms, including tunnel vision. Everything in the article Angie from MN explained about her daughter, brought tears to my eyes, as she was explaing my son to a tee. We have stopped tutoring for now, and my son is currently in vision therapy. We are only coming up on week three, but I am hoping that this is the answer to our learning difficulties. It is hard to see your child so frustrated, when you know they are trying. Now the other delemia, is trying to get insurance to help cover the cost. Medical says it is visual, and visual says it is medical. No one wants to pay. Any tips?

[Janet Hughes]

Thanks for the blog, Dr. Fortenbacher! It's filled with many helpful entries! We're also linking your Dear Abby's letter in a "shared story" on our website at: www.VisionFirstFoundation.org.

Good vision IS more than 20/20 clear acuity. It is our goal at Vision First that all eye doctors include functional vision testing as part of an eye exam. Not all eye doctors can treat these vision problems, but all eye doctors should be able to diagnose them!

We hope you will support our resolution and the approval of our Vision First report form.