Events and Activities : KidSight: Lions offer free eye screening for area children

Kidsight screenings underway: Vinton Lion Sue Thomas takes a snapshot of a preschooler's eyes at Vinton's Headstart early childhood center Sept. 12. The Lions Kids Sight team will conduct similar free screenings this fall at LaPorte City preschool programs, Vinton-Shellsburg Tiny Vikes preschool and other Vinton preschools and daycares that request the service. Shellsburg Lions also conduct screenings at the V-S Shellsburg center. Mark Wilburg and Sue Thomas, volunteers from the Vinton Lions Club, prepare to screen a young student at Headstart. It is that time of year again and the Lions are offering free vision screening to children ages 6 months to kindergarten. Since 2004 trained Vinton Lions have screened over 1,000 children for visual health, sharing special high-tech equipment with eight other clubs in the area. Lions raise funds to pay for the $10,000 cameras that captureimages of achild's eyes to see how light refracts through them The photos are sent electronically, to be evaluated by Department of Ophthalmology specialists at UI Children's Hospital who determine the need for further follow-up by eye care professionals and send results to parents. KidSight staff members provide a list of local eye doctors for each county in Iowa, and they follow up with every family thatdoesn't make an appointment for an eyeexam. About one in 25 children tested will require further screening and ninety percent of those children require remediation. One of the most common vision problems detected and treated in early stages of development is amblyopia ("lazy eye"�) which causes permanent vision loss if left untreated. Other Issues caught by the screening include farsightedness, nearsightedness, differences in refractive errors, astigmatism, things inside the eye (such as cataracts), and muscleimbalances Iowa Kidsight, a partnership between Lions volunteers and the University of Iowa Opthalmology center, has been lauded as a model program for Lions in other states. Catching visual problems early "has benefited thousands of kids by helping them see better, read better, and thrive,"� says Lori Short, director of IowaKidSight. Short said identifying and treating problems can prevent permanent visual deficiencies and even improve classroom behavior. Iowa KidSight is the only program in the area that provides that service for free.