Testing for More than 20/20
20/20 just means that a person can clearly see a certain letter on the standard eye chart (equivalent to what a person with normal vision should be able to see at 20 feet). There's so much more to healthy vision than 20/20!
A comprehensive vision exam is recommended for all children (6-18 years) before they start school and every year while they are in school, which cover evaluation of external and internal eye health, color vision and refraction for optical prescription, and screening visual analysis of the functional visual abilities. However, when a child struggles with reading and learning or is not achieving to his or her potential, a Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation is needed.
In addition, if you have a younger child (toddler to 5 years) who has an eye turn (Strabismus, Mata Juling斗鸡眼/斜视) or lazy eye (Amblyopia, Mata Malas 懒惰眼) you should schedule a Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation. A Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation is also necessary for adults who struggle with reading or who have had a head injury of some kind.
When children have special needs, are on the Autism Spectrum or have other developmental delays a Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation is strongly recommended.
Our Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation goes beyond testing for 20/20 vision and evaluates all the visual skills critical to reading and learning, such as:
1. Visual Acuity at Near
- Is vision clear and single at close distances? Clear sight at short distances is critical to reading, writing, close work, computer use, etc.
2. Eye Teaming Skills
- Do the two eyes aim, move, and work as a coordinated team? Weaknesses in binocular (two-eyed) vision and eye teaming skills can cause numerous difficulties, including convergence insufficiency and poor depth perception.
3. Eye Focusing Skills
- Do the eyes maintain clear vision at varying distances? Rapid, automatic eye focus adjustment is critical to learning, reading, writing, sports, etc. Deficiencies can cause visual fatigue, reduced reading comprehension, and/or avoidance of close work or other activities.
4. Eye Movement Skills
- Do eye movements show adequate muscle control, tracking, fixation, etc.? In the classroom, normal eye movements allow rapid and accurate shifting of the eyes along a line of print or from book to desk to board, etc. In sports, efficient eye movements contribute to eye-hand coordination, visual reaction time, and accurate tracking.
5. Reversal Frequency
- Is confusion or reversal of letters or words (b, d; p, q; saw, was; etc.) within the normal ranges for a given age? Past the age of seven, frequent visual and written reversals might indicate a visual perceptual dysfunction.
- In order to make sense out of what we see with our eyes, our brain takes the visual information to help us understand what we see. The Neuro-developmental vision evaluation also determines how well the brain is interpreting visual information.
Above are just a few of the many visual skills evaluated during our Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation. If your child has any of the symptoms on the symptom checklist or struggles with reading and learning a Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation could make all the difference.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation (NDVE) is much more in-depth than a regular eye exam. It takes approximately 1 to 2 hours and is given by our vision specialist & therapist on a one-to-one basis with the patient. The purpose of this testing is to determine how the visual system processes information, how vision integrates with the other sense modalities, and to determine whether vision is supporting or interfering with performance to full potential. Parents are asked to wait in the reception area during this testing. At the completion of this testing, scores will be tabulated and then presented at a consultation (scheduled at a different time) with our Behavioral and Developmental Optometrist, the patient and/or the parents. Treatment options will be discussed.
Occasionally the evaluation may take more time to complete due to the depth of the problem. If that occurs our vision specialist will explain everything to you at that time.
Since the Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation (NDVE) & Consultation appointments take a significant amount of time, we truly appreciate your adhering to our policy regarding missed appointments, last minute cancellations. When scheduling, please make sure that this appointment does not conflict with any other appointments that you may have on that day. We require 48 hours notification of canceling the Neuro-Developmental Vision Evaluation appointment so that we have sufficient time to fill your canceled time with other patients on our waiting list. There will be a RM100 charge for patient no-shows or canceling an NDVE appointment less than 48 hours of the appointment time. Any charges incurred by the patient for the missed appointment are the responsibility of the patient, parent or guardian.
Payment Policy
Please keep in mind we are reserving an appointment for 40-90min(s) with our vision specialist. Due to the length of this appointment a payment of 50% of the total fee is required to reserve your appointment. Payment is made through Paypal or local bank transfer (with the bank slip). Once you work out the best time for your appointment with our staff you will be sent a link to the paypal page or bank information to make your payment.
Preparing your child for the testing:
Be sure to let your child know there is no wrong or right answer, and there will be no shots. Make sure your child is well fed. We normally recommend a meal with protein and vegetables before the evaluation. In addition, please make sure your child receives a good night’s sleep.
Do not bring any additional children to the appointment:
It is important that you and your child are not distracted during the evaluation; therefore, please do not bring any additional children with you for this appointment.
Also check out
