According to a report in the November issue of Archives of Ophthalmology (one of the JAMA/Archives journals), eye testing of preterm children when they reach 2.5 years of age may predict vision problems at age 10.

Retinoscopies or tests for refractive errors that involve examining the back of the eye have been performed by Eva K. Larsson, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues at Uppsala University Hospital, Sweden in 198 preterm children at 6 months, 2.5 years and 10 years of age.

The authors of the said study concluded:

"In this population-based study, we found that a refractive error at 2.5 years of age predicts that refractive error will also be present at 10 years of age.

Recommendations for follow-up examinations must include all aspects of visual function, i.e., visual acuity, contrast sensitivity and visual fields, as well as the refraction, strabismus and perceptual problems.

All preterm children should be included in such follow-up examinations for refractive error, irrespective of the retinopathy of prematurity stage," or the degree to which blood vessels in the retina have developed abnormally because of preterm birth."

Source: Science Daily