Doctor: Children Not Complaining Does Not Mean They Are Free from Myopia

Paediatric ophthalmologist Dr. Indah Saraswati, BMEDSC(Hons), Sp.M, has reminded parents not to wait for their children to complain of blurry vision before having their eye condition examined, as children with myopia or nearsightedness are often unaware of the impairment. “Sometimes our children never complain. They never say, ‘Mum, this is blurry’,” said Indah during the Healthy Vision Day event organised by EssilorLuxottica Indonesia in Jakarta on Tuesday. She said parents need to pay attention to changes in their child’s behaviour that can be early signs of myopia, such as frequently moving closer when watching television or using gadgets, squinting when looking at distant objects, and difficulty reading writing on the whiteboard at school. According to Indah, parents should also not wait for a report from teachers regarding a child’s vision problems. This is because not all children are able to express the complaints they feel and not all teachers are aware of the issue. “Don’t wait for the teacher to say something. Sometimes the teacher doesn’t notice, and the child doesn’t speak up,” said the doctor, who holds a Specialist I in Ophthalmology degree from the University of Indonesia. She added that delays in detecting vision problems can lead to less optimal treatment, especially if a child has a lazy eye or amblyopia that is only discovered after the age of 10. “Above the age of 10, it is too late for lazy eye. So the earlier it is detected, the better for the child’s visual future,” she said. Indah advised parents to regularly ask whether their child can see the writing on the whiteboard from the back row and to observe daily habits that may indicate vision problems. Early eye examinations are also recommended, particularly if the child has a family history of myopia.