North Idaho’s Pediatric Ophthalmologist
Dr. Sonya Blizzard is the first fellowship trained pediatric ophthalmologist in North Idaho and she treats a wide variety of conditions including amblyopia (lazy eye), strabismus (misaligned eyes), anisocoria (asymmetric pupil size), hordeolum/chalazion (stye), allergic/vernal conjunctivitis, congenital ptosis (eyelid drooping), congenital cataracts, congenital glaucoma.
We commonly see patients for:
Failed vision screening
If your child failed a vision screening at their doctor’s appointment or at school it is critical to get a full dilated eye exam to determine if they require treatment such as glasses or patching. There are two major types of screenings, a traditional visual acuity screening using a vision chart or a photoscreener which looks like a camera and gives an estimate of your child’s glasses prescription.
‘Lazy eye’ or Amblyopia
Amblyopia affects about 2% of the population and it is crucial to correct it completely while the visual system is still developing. Amblyopia is treated with an eye patch or sometimes with use of a weekly dilating eye drop. Both treatments work by forcing the weaker eye to work by covering or blurring the normal eye.
Strabismus
Strabismus means misaligned eyes. The most common form is esotropia or crossed eyes followed by exotropia or a wandering eye. Vertical misalignment also occurs and is referred to as hypertropia or hypotropia.
Does my child need an eye exam?
The American Academy of Pediatric Ophthalmology does not recommend routine eye exams for all children but all children should have vision screenings typically either at their doctor’s office or at school. If you have a family history of eye disease such as strong glasses/contacts prescription or lazy eye or strabismus (misaligned eyes) then a formal eye exam would be recommended.
Other signs that could indicate issues with a child's vision would include headache (especially with reading), squinting or closing one or both eyes, keeping the head tilted or turned in a particular position, appearing to have one eye that appears crossed, drifted outwards or upwards, having difficulty identifying objects or people at a distance, consistently looking over their glasses or tilting glasses, or holding toys very close to the face to identify. Other signs of common eye problems are persistently red, itchy eyes, tearing and crusting from one or both eyes, swelling of the eyelids or eyes that are overly sensitive to light.
“The eyes are the jewel of the body.”
— Henry David Thoreau
Questions?
If you have questions about whether your child needs an eye examination or any of our services please click here to get in contact with us. If you are already a patient of our office please call our office directly to get in contact with our staff.