Infant and toddler vision care: a supplement to the Manual of Infant Health Screening conducted by Korean National Health Insurance Corporation

ABSTRACT

Since 2008, a nationwide infant and toddler vision screening program has been initiated as a part of the Infant Health Screening Project of the Korean National Health Insurance Corporation. Because children's visual system is in the process of development and they can hardly be treated after its maturation, their vision problems must be screened for and treated in their early age. The program screens for frequent and important eye problems from the age of 4 months to 6 years. The vision screening part consists of history questionnaire section and examination section. The history questionnaire section was devised to screen the symptoms of the target diseases that frequently occur in their due age. The examination section comprises penlight examination up to the age of 2 and visual acuity testing afterward. Amblyopia is by far the most important target disease in all screening sessions. Unilateral or bilateral vision problems, strabismus, other intraocular blinding conditions, blepharoptosis, abnormal head posture of ocular origin, and refractive errors are other important target diseases. Proper knowledge of target diseases and methods is essential for the successful screening. This article is intended to supplement the vision screening of the Doctor's Manual for Infant Health Screening.