InfantSEE® Program Background

The American Optometric Association (AOA) and The Vision Care Institute of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc., have partnered to create InfantSEE®, a no-cost public health program developed to provide professional eye care for infants nationwide. Through InfantSEE®, optometrists will provide a one-time, comprehensive eye assessment to infants in their first year of life, offering early detection of potential eye and vision problems at no cost regardless of income.

The InfantSEE® program:

• Provides no-cost access to an eye-care doctor who has the instruments and resources not available to general-care doctors like pediatricians and family physicians
• Detects potential problems that, if undetected, may lead to learning and developmental issues later
• Gives new parents the peace of mind that their infant’s vision is developing properly

Prevalence of Vision Problems and Eye Diseases That Will Develop in Children

• 1 in 10 children is at risk from undiagnosed vision problems[i]
• 1 in 30 children will be affected by amblyopia – often referred to as lazy eye – a leading cause of vision loss in people younger than 45 years[ii]
• 1 in 25 will develop strabismus – more commonly known as crossed-eyes – a risk factor for amblyopia[iii]
• 1 in 33 will show significant refractive error such as near-sightedness, far-sightedness and astigmatism[iv]
• 1 in 100 will exhibit evidence of eye disease – e.g. glaucoma[v]
• 1 in 20,000 children have retinoblastoma (intraocular cancer) the seventh most common pediatric cancer[vi]

Clinical Data Demonstrating the Need for InfantSEE®

• A study reported by the American Academy of Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (AAPOS) in 1999 compared two groups of 8-year-olds for amblyopia[vii]
  • One group of 808 children had been screened between the ages of 12 and 30 months and provided appropriate treatment[viii]
  • The other 782 children from the same community did not receive the infant screening[ix]
  • At age 8, the group that did not receive the infant screening was 17 times more likely to have amblyopia[x]
• The Avon Longitudinal Study of Pregnancy and Childhood (ALSPAC) reported that intensive screening performed 6 times between ages 8 months and 37 months by an eye care professional led to a decrease in[xi]:
  • Amblyopia, which was three times less likely after treatment – from 1.8 percent to 0.6 percent [xii]
  • Residual amblyopia from 25 percent to 7.5 percent after treatment[xiii]
• Current red reflex screening appears to be ineffective in detecting early retinoblastoma as over 80 percent of patients had their presenting sign detected by a family member or friend[xiv]
• Untreated amblyopia costs the U.S. nearly $7.4 billion in earning power each year. There is a return of $22 for each dollar spent on amblyopia diagnosis and treatment [xv]