Normal vision may be an illusion! Half of the senior class children have bottomed out their farsightedness. Doctors call for dilated optometry before primary school.

The Affiliated Hospital of Yangming Jiaotong University held the 16th International Medical Symposium today. One of the major themes focused on the prevention and treatment of myopia in children. Cai Dezhong, professor of ophthalmology and ophthalmologist at the Department of Medicine of Yangming Jiaotong University, said, "The normal vision of young children may be an illusion!" A clinical survey found that half of the children in the upper class have bottomed out their farsightedness reserve and entered the early stage of myopia. A stern warning is issued that children must have at least one dilated eye refraction before entering elementary school to prevent vision crises as early as possible.

Cai Dezhong emphasized that in the digital era with the proliferation of 3C products, the prevention and treatment of myopia in schoolchildren faces severe challenges. Parents should first establish a correct concept. Myopia is by no means a minor problem that can be solved by wearing glasses, but a serious eye disease that may lead to retinal detachment, glaucoma and other blindness complications. Therefore, prevention and treatment cannot begin until the child complains that he cannot see clearly, but must be deployed before the onset of the disease.

He further pointed out that the "big class" in kindergarten is the most critical moment for the development of myopia. The prevalence of myopia in young children often doubles and surges during the early transition stage. This group of children in the early stage of myopia may develop symptoms at any time due to excessive consumption of their farsightedness reserve. However, the naked eye visual acuity usually remains 1.0. If only a regular eye chart examination shows no abnormality at all, it is easy for parents to have the illusion of good vision.

"Only point dilation refraction can reveal the true details of the eyeball!" Cai Dezhong analyzed that children's eyes have extremely strong adjustment ability. Only by relaxing the ciliary muscles through point dilation agent and eliminating the interference of false adjustment can the true power and remaining farsightedness reserve be accurately measured. If we can intervene before the onset of myopia and delay myopia by "one year, one year later", the chance of deteriorating into high myopia in the future will be significantly reduced.

Yang Yujie, an ophthalmologist at Yangming Jiaotong University Hospital, treats patients.

The team at Yangming Jiaotong University Affiliated Hospital has been deeply involved in children's vision protection for many years, promoting "Everyday Outdoor 120" and early intervention, which has reduced the myopia rate among Yilan's large children from 15.4% to about 8%. The team has also actively promoted early-stage myopia prevention and piloted a "natural landscape classroom" to create a learning environment for children to protect their eyesight and implement preventive medicine.

Cai Dezhong called on parents not to take their children lightly even if their children's current visual acuity is normal, as long as they are in the early stages of myopia and should be taken to the eye department for follow-up treatment regularly. He reiterated that prevention is better than cure, and parents must remember to complete at least one professional dilated eye examination "before their children enter primary school" in order to preserve their vision assets during the golden critical period and avoid the threat of blindness caused by high myopia.