Identifying vision disorders in babies is very important. Poor vision can slow a child's development in a variety of ways. In adults, untreated vision disorders can dramatically affect function and wellbeing.

Because of developmental problems, age, or acquired physical problems, some individuals are not able to communicate that they are having discomfort or pain. That's an opportunity for family members and care givers to listen to what behaviors may be telling them about medical conditions.

Behaviors in infants or children that may be telling you about poor vision:

• Doesn't blink at sudden bright lights
• Doesn't respond to familiar faces, but does to familiar voices
• Not interested in books, TV, brightly colored toys
• Ignores silent objects, but does turn toward noisy ones
• Doesn't reach for things placed in front of them
• Doesn't move about very much
• Squints or tilts head to see better

Adult behaviors that may communicate about vision disorders:

• Doesn't make or maintain eye contact
• No longer recognizes people
• Finds lighting too bright or too dim
• Has trouble seeing in dimly lit rooms
• Holds reading materials too close to eyes, or at arm's length
• Changes leisure time activities
• No longer enjoys television
• Often bumps into things; moves about cautiously
• Squints or tilts the head to see
• Finds it hard to practice table manners
• Often changes eye glass prescriptions
• Over-cautious driver
• Changes personal appearance, less care with grooming

Other factors that may indicate the presence of a vision disorder include:

• Friends, family members are concerned about person's vision
• Family history of vision problems
• Headache, nausea
• Crossed eyes, eyes that don't focus together, jerky eye movements
• Eyes are red, irritated: dry, itchy, burning, watery, painful; eyelids red-rimmed, crusty, swollen
• Vision is blurred, double; seeing spots, haloes, faint images
• Change in eye color (the iris)
• Eyes stick out too much or seem shrunken or too small
• Pupils look white, milky, have spots
• Pupils are different sizes: don't get bigger in the dark and smaller in the light
• When photos are taken, the "red-eye" has blotches, or looks white instead of red
• Eyes don't close all the way when person sleeps
• Diabetes

A Checklist of What Behaviors Tell Us

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