Low Vision Services
Preschool Vision Screening Program
Our Preschool Vision Screening Program provides free child-friendly vision screenings for close to 25,000 children from ages 3 to 5 years old, throughout Kings, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties. Our staff, sometimes working together with trained volunteers, screen for disorders such as amblyopia (“lazy eye”), strabismus (a turn of the eye), myopia (near-sightedness), and astigmatism—disorders that can lead to permanent visual impairment if they are not detected and treated early in a child’s life.
Screening tests for vision problems in preschool aged children are a cost-effective and important measure to identify children at risk. With early detection and treatment, most cases are reversible.
Signs of possible eye trouble in children include:
- Behavior—child rubs eye excessively; shuts or covers one eye, tilts head, or thrusts head forward; has difficulty reading or in other work requiring close use of the eyes; blinks more than usual or is irritable when doing close work; is unable to see distant things clearly; and/or squints eyelids together or frowns.
- Appearance—crossed eyes; red-rimmed, encrusted or swollen eyelids; inflamed or watery eyes; and/or unequal pupil size.
- Complaints—eyes itch, burn, or feel scratchy; cannot see well; dizziness, headaches, or nausea following close eye work; and/or blurred or double vision.
Low Vision Clinics
We also operate Low Vision Clinics in Brooklyn and in Hempstead and Huntington, Long Island. At these clinics, our doctors train patients on how to maximize the use of their remaining vision. Their instructions include how to best set up a home or work place. Helen Keller Services for the Blind also offers instructions in daily living tasks and vision rehabilitation with lenses which may help you see better.
Helen Keller Services for the Blind is the first organization to establish Low Vision Clinics as part of the overall care for persons with restricted vision. Since opening the clinics in 1953, thousands of children and adults have benefited from our eye care.
Anyone can make an appointment for the clinic—even normally sighted patients.
