Common eye diseases in children when exposed to a lot of electronic screens

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor I Nguyen Thi Bich Nhi - Ophthalmologist - General Surgery Department - Vinmec Nha Trang International General Hospital.

Myopia With the great development of electronic devices in parallel with the increasing popularity of the Internet, children today spend more time on colorful electronic devices than toys. traditional as before. This increases the risk of eye diseases in children, especially refractive errors.
At a young age, children's visual organs are not yet complete in both structure and physiology, exposing the eyes to electronic screens that require greater concentration than allowed will cause the eyes to malfunction. Stress produces myopia. Besides, children tend to keep their eyes close to the screen of ipad or phone, so myopia comes faster.
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Blue light exposure Blue light from cell phones, ipads or other electronic devices is one of the main causes of retinal diseases in children. Retinopathy occurs when abnormal blood vessel growth spreads to the retina and tissue lining the back of the eye.
These abnormal blood vessels are very fragile creating retinal scars, which then fall out of place leading to retinal detachment. Retinal detachment is considered the main cause of vision loss and blindness in children with retinopathy.

If the child has squinting, does not look directly at the center of the eye when using the phone or ipad screen, the child should be taken to the hospital for examination because it is very likely that the child has crossed eyes. Strabismus in the long run can lead to dangerous diseases such as cataracts or damage to the cornea. It is not possible to cure squint, but can only minimize the use of electronic screens to protect eyes.
Dry eyes When children are too focused on electronic screens, their eyes will not be regulated properly, unable to blink continuously, leading to dry eyes. Dry eye occurs when a child's tears are not produced enough or tears do not contain enough oil, so they cannot provide moisture for the eyes to work and avoid injuries and infections.
Eye fatigue Children who often look at cell phones and ipads often experience eye strain due to overactive eyes. Fatigue makes children uncomfortable and can lead to eye diseases.
However, if the child's eyes are tired and knows how to rest his eyes properly, the eyes can be restored to health quickly and without danger. However, parents should not be ignored because eye strain is also a sign of some eye diseases in children, it is necessary to take the child to the doctor soon for proper treatment.

Actively increase blinking, needing breaks to alternate between periods of using electronic devices, breathing, and walking around the room. The 20/20 Rule: To keep the eyes from getting dry and tired, parents should guide their children to rest their eyes regularly with the 20-20-20 rule. That is, for every 20 minutes of screen time, rest your eyes for 20 seconds and focus on an object or objects 20 feet away. Take your child for regular eye exams or annual eye exams. Ensure good lighting in the child's room. Most eye discomforts are caused by incompatible or insufficient light.

Children aged 0 - 2 years old should not be exposed to electronic devices in any way. Limit the use time to 1 hour / day for children aged 3 - 5 years old. Children should only be exposed to 2 hours per day with children aged 6-18 years old.
Parents need to make a habit of themselves not to use their phones to play or play games too much at home. This will help your child understand that the phone or iPad is just a means to work.

When you want to use these devices for other purposes, parents should wait until the child is asleep or when the child is not visible to avoid arising concerns in the child's heart.
Children need to be built a habit before using electronic devices, they must ask for permission from adults and need parental consent to be allowed to use.

Slow development of literacy, language ability, poor reasoning ability and impaired memory. Children's brains absorb 60% more electromagnetic waves than adult brains (due to lower skull thickness). Excessive electromagnetic radiation affects a child's development and increases the child's risk of diseases such as leukemia and asthma. Difficulty sleeping, disrupting circadian rhythms. Children are prone to depression, anxiety, personality is often difficult to teach, reduced communication with parents and peers makes children prone to autism. Injury to the joints in the hands, back and neck. Especially when children sit in the wrong position and use the phone for too long. If the child is having vision problems, parents should take the child to a medical facility to be examined and treated by the doctor as soon as possible. Currently, Vinmec International General Hospital has a package of services related to vision such as:
Ortho-K package Dr. CKI Nguyen Thi Bich Nhi has nearly 10 years of experience in eye surgery. Treatment of medical eye diseases as well as eye surgery such as: pterygium, entropion, milia, glaucoma and cataract surgery by Phaco method. Besides, it also treats diabetic retinopathy by intraocular Anti-VEGF injection and ophthalmic surgery. Currently, the doctor is an Eye Doctor in the Department of Medical Examination - Internal Medicine Vinmec Nha Trang International General Hospital

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