Autism and Vision | World Autism Awareness Month

April is World Autism Awareness Month. When you think of autism, vision issues may not be the first thing that comes to mind, but some people with autism may experience issues related to their eyes and vision. For example, visual defensiveness is common in people with an autism spectrum disorder. 
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Learning more about what visual defensiveness involves and how it is treated is helpful in dealing with the condition. The article below takes a look at visual defensiveness and how to cope with it. 
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What is visual defensiveness?

It is common for people with an autism spectrum disorder to have sensory issues. Sensory defensiveness involves varied symptoms that develop due to a reaction to stimuli. The stimuli may be something negative or positive, such as a soft touch or music.

Visual defensiveness involves sensitivity to visual input or stimuli. Visual defensiveness is more about functional vision skills than visual acuity. Visual acuity is how well the eyes distinguish shapes, make out details, and see images. Functional vision involves how well the eyes work together and relay information or send visual information to the brain.

This may manifest itself a little differently between individuals. Symptoms of visual defensiveness may include:

• Frequently moving the eyes, scanning for visual information
• Trouble making eye contact 
• Squinting
• Sensitivity to light

Some people also develop the following:

• A need to wear sunglasses anytime they are outside
• Watery eyes when exposed to bright light
• Nausea when looking at fast-moving objects

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How is visual defensiveness treated? 

Each person with autism is unique and has their own experience with visual processing. An individual treatment plan is needed to address specific issues related to sensory processing. Usually, early intervention is the best approach to treat problems as soon as possible. Often diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorder occur in childhood.

Possible treatment includes:

Ruling out other vision issues: It is helpful for children with autism to have an eye exam to rule out other vision problems. Vision issues are common in people with an autism spectrum disorder. A study in the journal AAPOS from the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus found that 71 percent of children with an autism spectrum disorder have some form of ophthalmic disorder. This was significantly higher than in the general population. Diagnosing and treating vision issues is an important part of a treatment plan.

Occupational therapy: Occupational therapists may work with individuals with visual defensiveness to help them learn ways to process visual information. Through various games and activities, occupational therapists may help normalize a child’s experience with different visual stimuli.

Vision therapy: Vision therapy for children involves age-appropriate activities and exercises that may promote improved eye focusing, movement, and visual processing. This may help children learn ways to deal with visual information and stimuli.

Other eye problems with an autism spectrum disorder 

As stated above, visual issues are common in children that have autism spectrum disorder. Possible visual issues include:

• Strabismus: Abnormal alignment of the eyes
• Amblyopia: Reduced vision in one eye
• Nearsightedness: An inability to clearly see things far away
• Farsightedness: Problems seeing things up close
• Balance and posture issues may also develop as a result of vision problems.

If you have questions about autism spectrum disorder and vision, we are happy to help. If you would like to ask whether an appointment with one of our eye doctors would be appropriate at this time, call our office at 508-746-8600.