When Childhood Clumsiness Lingers, It Could Be the Eyes

Most kids go through a period of clumsiness as they develop and grow into their bodies, something that parents often chuckle over. This lack of coordination can become a concern, however, for parents whose children don’t outgrow this stage at the same time that their peers do. Parents might become anxious about their child’s development or start worrying that an unknown medical condition could be causing the clumsiness. In some instances, this is exactly the case. Kids who are clumsy might have an eye misalignment that results in a binocular vision disorder known as

Vertical Heterophoria

(VH).

When Childhood Clumsiness Lingers, It Could Be the Eyes

Indications That BVD Is Present

If you are the parent of a child who is clumsy and uncoordinated, you may also notice that your son or daughter doesn’t engage in activities that kids the same age generally prefer or avoids activities that require a lot of concentration. They may also have trouble reading and try to avoid it altogether. All of these signs, combined with a lack of coordination, could indicate that your child has a binocular vision disorder.

Binocular Vision Dysfunction – also known as BVD – is a condition where the two eyes are not working smoothly together as a team, resulting in the inability of the brain to create one clear, unified image. Even when this misalignment is very slight, it can create chaos within the visual system, resulting in uncomfortable and sometimes painful symptoms such as nausea,

headaches and dizziness

, anxiety, reading and learning challenges, and the aforementioned lack of coordination. BVD sufferers may also feel unsteady when walking and experience additional symptoms such as facial pain, sensitivity to light, motion sickness, head tilt and neck pain.

Where to Turn for Help

Vertical heterophoria and other binocular vision disorders can be treated but must first be correctly diagnosed. They rarely are detected during a regular eye exam, however. Rather, a proper diagnosis requires a NeuroVisual Examination by a qualified NeuroVisual Specialist like those at Vision Specialists of Michigan. We can help identify and treat your child’s condition using customized micro-prism lenses to realign the images. Many of our patients see dramatic improvements in their condition almost immediately. Before you know it, your child could be running, playing and enjoying normal childhood activities without having to worry about vision and balance issues!

To find out more about our process, contact Vision Specialists of Michigan at

(248) 258-9000 or fill out our

BVD questionnaire

Author: Vision Specialists of Michigan