Vision function in children 10 years after grade 3 or 4 intraventricular haemorrhage with ventricular dilation: A masked prospective study.
Cathy Williams, Penny Warnes, Sally Jary and 7 others
PMID 35735110WHAT IT FOUND
Ten years later, every child tested had at least one visual impairment, averaging four per child.
Parents reported normal vision for most, missing eye movement and processing deficits linked to lower cognitive scores and extra school support.
Key findings
01Every child tested had at least one visual impairment, with a median of four impairments per child, most commonly strabismus and reduced stereoacuity.
02Parents reported normal vision for 24 children, contrasting sharply with direct testing which found high rates of impairment in eye movements, contrast sensitivity, and visual processing.
03Children with impaired pursuit or saccadic eye movements, or who failed visual processing tasks, were significantly more likely to have a special educational need than those without these specific deficits.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was opportunistic and exploratory, not powered to detect differences between treatment arms or haemorrhage grades. Participants were self-selected and more able than those who did not attend, likely underestimating the true prevalence of visual problems in the wider cohort. Parent-reported vision data significantly underestimated the level of visual morbidity found on direct examination. The assessment did not include all possible visual tests (such as formal perimetry or visual attention tasks), meaning some deficits may have been missed. The number of impairments was used as a proxy for severity, which does not account for the impact of individual severe defects.
Declared interests
None stated in the provided text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume a child's vision is normal because they pass an acuity test or because parents report no concerns. This study found that every child had at least one visual impairment, and parent reports missed the majority of deficits, particularly in eye movements and visual processing.