M. SOTIROVSKA-SIRVINI, L. KOZAR

EARLY DETECTION OF LAW VISION WITH PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN TRHOUG SYSTEMATIC CHECK-UPS AT THE AGE OF 3 AND 5 IN BITOLA

The early detection of the law vision of pre-school children has been carried out through systematic check-ups by an ophthalmologist sent by the Department for preventive protection-Advisory Division at the Medical Center since 1977.

The children are invited by the Advisory Center and during the systematic check-ups they are sent to the Cabinet for orthoptics and pleoptics for the ophthamologic check-up.

The parents are motivated for the check-up and are explained how to prepare the child for cooperation during the examination. The findings are recorded in the child record card in the Advisory Center together with the findings of the psychologist, blood test, urine, faecal test of parasites and some other necessary tests.

The records of the examination were obtained from the evidence on systematic check-ups at the Cabinet for orthoptics and pleoptics.

From 1987 till August this year, 5.414 children-3.609 at the age of 3 and 1.805 at the age of 5 came for systematic check-ups at the Cabinet.

Among the examined children, 5.7% were with echophobia, 2.3% were with astigmatism, 1.6% with amblyopia, 1.4% with hypermetropia, 0.9% with strabismus and 0.2% with miopia.

Among the children with sight problems, the echophobia is present with 47.3%, astigmatism with 18.8%, amblyopia with 13.2%, hypermetropia with 11.9%, strabismus with 7.2% and miopia with 1.8%.

Children whose parents, brothers and sisters wear glasses were sent for check-ups at the age of 18 to 3 years. The earliest findings of sight difficulties are obtained with children who cooperate during the check-ups.

As soon as the low vision is discovered, the defectologist-orthoptic therapist starts the necessary exercises and the sight is corrected with the glasses.

At this age, children easily adapt to wearing glasses and they do not oppose them as the children whose sight correction started at the school age.