Reduced visual acuity in children from 5 to 6 years old, with LEA chart

To assess visual acuity in 5-year-old children with LEA chart and to estimate the frequency of reduced visual acuity in this age.

Study aimed at children attending the last year of preschool education in Public Kindergartens and Private Social Solidarity Institutions (IPSS) under the influence Regional Health Administration of the Médio Tejo, in Portugal. The 15-line LEA charts at 3 m were used and the presentation visual acuity was measured monocularly starting with the right eye. The ETDRS-fast methodology was used.

A total of 3072 children participated, being 51% male and 54% from rural area. A rate of 13.7% children with a reduced level of visual acuity was found, that is, visual acuity worse or equal to 0.2 logMAR in at least one eye, or an interocular difference greater than two lines.

This research shows that reduced VA frequency rate in children between 5 and 6 years old is high. The literature presents amblyopia (refractive and/or strabismic) and uncorrected refractive errors without amblyopia as the main cause of reduced VA in childhood, and these anomalies negatively affect child development, especially at the educational level. Reduced VA interferes with performance on a number of key tasks in the learning process. Thus, it is important to preserve the running program to identify these deficits and lead to their correction before the beginning of the school stage.