Spring brings opportunities for sports vision awareness ? News ...

The return of warm weather in spring prompts an increase in outdoor and athletic activity. That can offer optometrists an opportunity to promote eye safety, encourage visual training, and promote physical activity as a means of preventing systemic conditions, such as diabetes, hypertension and obesity, that can result in eye problems, according to the AOA Sports Vision Section (SVS).

Participation in nationally recognized observances such as National Youth Sports Safety Month (April) or National Physical Fitness and Sports Month (May), as well as campaigns like First Lady Michelle Obama?s Let?s Move campaign, can provide optometrists opportunities to conduct public outreach activities, notes Gary L. Etting, O.D., AOA SVS chair.

Inclusion of protective eyewear utilization as a recognized objective under Healthy People 2020, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Service?s official national public health agenda for the decade, should spur both optometrists and the public at large to encourage the use of proper eye protection by both children and adults during athletic and recreational activity, Dr. Etting contends.

Focusing on the use of personal protective eyewear in both recreational activities and hazardous situations around the home, the HHS hopes to achieve the use of appropriate eye protection among 18.2 percent of children and adolescents (ages 6 to 17) as well as among 43.7 percent of adults.?

Every 13 minutes a sports-related eye injury is treated in an emergency room in the United States, according to the National Eye Institute (NEI).

The majority of those eye injuries occur in children under the age of 15.

Most can be prevented with the use of protective eyewear, according to the institute.

Efforts to promote the use of safety eyewear in sports and recreational activities can often have the additional benefit of encouraging the use of proper safety eyewear at work or in hazardous environments around the home, Dr. Etting notes.

To help increase awareness of the role good vision plays in athletic performance, the AOA recently introduced its new line of ?See Better, Play Better? canvas artwork prints.

?Many youths, parents and coaches may still not realize that simple vision correction can markedly improve a child?s ability to see a ball and perform better on an athletic field,? Dr. Etting said. ?Fewer still understand that there are sports vision training programs to improve the binocular vision, eye tracking, and eye coordination necessary for good sports performance.?

?In line with the AOA?s ongoing efforts to ensure all children undergo comprehensive eye examinations, involvement in youth sports programs can be an effective way to engage parents who might not otherwise be inclined to seek comprehensive eye or vision examinations for their children. In that way, sports vision programs can help to diagnose and correct eye or vision problems which might impair academic as well as athletic performance,? Dr. Etting said.

The AOA SVS offers a variety of materials appropriate for use in sports or recreational vision programs including its Junior Olympics Sports Vision Evaluation Protocols, Sports Vision Guidebook Series, Sports Vision University Education Program, and SVS Eye Emergency Triage Card [see the AOA Web site?s Sports Vision page (www.aoa.org/x4787.xml)].

Patient information is available through the Sports and Vision link on the AOA Web site?s Caring for Your Vision page (www.aoa.org/x4724.xml).

?Help improve the health of our nation. Take advantage of this time of year to discuss the health and eye benefits of athletic participation, protection of eyes while playing sports, and the need for comprehensive eye exams,? Dr. Etting said.?

National sports-related health observances

August
Children?s Eye and Safety Month ? Prevent Blindness America will disseminate information about amblyopia (a condition that can affect 2 percent to 3 percent of children), as well as tips on the prevention of eye injuries in children, signs of possible eye problems, and general eye health. For additional information, see the www.PreventBlindness.org.

September
Sports and Home Eye Safety Month ? There are thousands of eye injuries each year related to common household products and sports, according to Prevent Blindness America. The organization offers tips on how to protect adults and children from such eye injuries. For additional information, see www.preventblindness.org.

April
National Youth Sports Safety Month ? Supported by more than 60 organizations (including the American College of Sports Medicine, the President?s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, and the United States Olympic Committee), the National Youth Sports Safety Foundation?s National Youth Sports Safety Month program offers safety tip sheets for children, guidelines for coaches and parents, and suggestions for special events to promote sports safety (www.nyssf.org/campaign.html).

May
National Physical Fitness and Sports Month ? Sponsored by President?s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, this observance is intended to promote the benefits of physical activity including its importance in the control of type 2 diabetes. A variety of resources are available on the council?s Web site (www.fitness.gov).

Additional eye health awareness efforts can be found on the AOA Web site Health Observances Calendar (www.aoa.org/x5940.xml).

Healthy People 2020 protective eyewear objectives

V?6: Increase the use of personal protective eyewear in recreational activities and hazardous situations around the home.

V?6.1: Increase the use of personal protective eyewear in recreational activities and hazardous situations around the home among children and adolescents age 6 to 17 years.

Target: 18.2 percent.

Baseline: 16.5 percent of children and adolescents age 6 to 17 years used personal protective eyewear in recreational activities and hazardous situations around the home in 2008.

Data source: National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).

V?6.2: Increase the use of protective eyewear in recreational activities and hazardous situations around the home among adults age 18 years and over.

Target: 43.7 percent.

Baseline: 39.7 percent of adults age 18 years and over used protective eyewear in recreational activities and hazardous situations around the home in 2008.????????????????
?
Data source: National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), NCHS, CDC.

(For information on additional Healthy People? objectives that may be relevant to sports vision projects, see ?Healthy Eyes Healthy People 2020? in the March edition of Optometry: Journal of the American Optometric Association.)

Source: http://newsfromaoa.org/2011/06/08/spring-brings-opportunities-for-sports-vision-awareness/

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