Young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are much less likely to receive vision screening than their peers, despite high risk for serious eye disorders, new data show.
During 63,829 well visits of children ages 3 to 5 from 2016 to 2019 across a primary care network in Delaware, Pennsylvania and Florida, only 36.5% of children with ASD had completed vision screenings, compared with 59.5% of children without ASD diagnoses, researchers reported on Tuesday in Pediatrics.
Among those with ASD, the screening rates were 27.6% for Black children, 39.7% for white children and 39.8% for children classified as multiracial.
Vision screening rates for children with ASD were much higher in Florida, at 45.7%, than in Delaware and Pennsylvania, where only 28.1% were screened.
In Florida, 80% of medical practices use a vision-testing method called photoscreening, which uses a specialized camera or video system to capture detailed images of a child's eyes, the researchers said. Photoscreening is particularly helpful for children with autism because they cannot always understand and respond to instructions or questions in conventional visual tests. Only 13% of practices in Delaware and Pennsylvania were using this approach.
"Increased use of photoscreening may prove to be a great tool for reducing disparities and increasing vision screening in more vulnerable populations with autism," study leader Dr. Brittany Perry of Nemours Children's Health in Wilmington, Delaware said in a statement.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends annual instrument-based vision screening, particularly for children with developmental delays.
This newsletter was edited by Bill Berkrot.
