What My Child Can See

In order for vision to be present, two things are needed

• The eye and the visual system (visual pathway to the brain) must have developed normally
• The brain must have the ability to ‘decipher’ the messages being sent to it i.e. know what is being seen

Normal vision means that a child can

• detect detail (visual acuity)
• see objects to either side, above or below the direction in which he/she is looking (visual field)
• detect objects against various backgrounds (contrast sensitivity)
• appreciate the colour of objects (colour vision)

Vision impairment

If the structure of the eye or any part of the pathway to the vision centres in the brain are damaged, causing a limitation in one or more of the functions of the eye or visual system, then some degree of visual impairment will be present.

The exact nature and extent of your child’s vision will depend on the cause of the vision loss.

For example

• If there is a problem with the front of the eye, for example if the coloured section of the eye (the iris) is either missing or not properly formed (aniridia) so that the pupil is huge, too much light will enter the eye and your child will experience glare and dazzle.
• The eye may also move or shake (nystagmus) and this movement of the eye, together with glare and dazzle, reduces the amount your child can see.
• In cases in which the central part (the macula) of the layer at the back of the eye (retina) is affected, the amount your child can see clearly will be reduced. Recognising faces and reading may be difficult. Surrounding vision (peripheral vision) will work well and your child will be able to use this to get around without bumping into things.
• If a problem exists with the wiring between the eye and the brain (optic nerve hypoplasia) then much less information about the visual world is sent to the brain. But the effect will vary according to the damage to the wiring.

But many children who are born with a visual impairment think their vision is ‘normal’ because they assume that everyone sees the world how they see it. They do not realise that others see the world differently.

So what can my child see?

In children who are partially sighted (sight impaired) or blind (severe sight impairment) the sharpness or clarity of vision (visual acuity) is commonly affected with or without loss of the ability to see objects around them (visual field).

However, many children may still have some useful ‘residual sight’ which they can use to help them get about, locate objects and in some cases, with the help of special aids, see pictures and words.

For more information please call 0800 781 1444