As children across the UAE settle into a new school year, parents are ticking off the familiar back-to-school checklist — uniforms, books, transport and stationery. But doctors say one important check can easily be overlooked, a child’s vision.
With Dubai’s 2026-27 school year beginning in the first week of September, this is often a busy period for vision screening. A Dubai paediatric clinic’s 2026 back-to-school vision guide, published last month, has highlighted headaches, eye strain and difficulty concentrating among signs that could warrant attention.
According to an article published on the Doctors Clinic Diagnostic Center (DCDC) website, undetected vision problems affect roughly one in four school-age children. Such problems can also be mistaken for inattention, laziness or reading difficulties, particularly because young children may not realise their vision is different from normal. For parents, the challenge is knowing when an everyday complaint such as a headache could be linked to eyesight and when it may point to something else. Dr Mamata Bothra, specialist paediatrics and neonatologist at International Modern Hospital Dubai, said an uncorrected refractive error or focusing problem can sometimes cause eyestrain and headaches, particularly after prolonged near work.
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“Parents should look for squinting, blurred or double vision, sitting unusually close to books or screens, frequent eye rubbing, difficulty reading, or headaches that consistently occur after visual tasks,” she said. However, she stressed that headaches have several possible causes and should not automatically be attributed to a vision problem.
When headaches should prompt an eye check
A recurring pattern can be particularly useful for parents to watch for. If a child repeatedly complains of a headache while reading, doing homework or carrying out other close-up tasks, doctors say a vision assessment may be appropriate.
Bothra said such headaches can warrant an assessment for refractive errors, as well as problems with accommodation or binocular vision. At the same time, parents should look at everyday factors that can contribute to discomfort.
“Parents should ensure adequate sleep, hydration, good lighting and regular breaks from prolonged screen or near work. Persistent or recurrent headaches should also be discussed with the child’s pediatrician,” she said.
Dr Rowena Benita Sibiya, Consultant Paediatrician at NMC Royal Hospital DIP, Dubai and NMC Mother and Child Hospital, DIP, Dubai, similarly cautioned against assuming that poor eyesight is behind every headache.
“However, it is vitally important to rule out other possible causes of headaches, and not assume that every headache is related to poor eyesight,” she said.
She advised parents to watch for accompanying symptoms, including vomiting, fever, sleep disturbances, neck stiffness, behavioural changes or confusion, and severe sudden pain. “If a headache occurs with any of the following associated warning signs, urgent medical care should be sought,” she said.
For children without these warning signs, prolonged screen use can still contribute to eye strain, even when their eyesight is otherwise normal. Doctors recommend regular breaks, appropriate lighting and comfortable viewing distances, alongside time outdoors.
Sibiya added, “The 20-20-20 rule, which can also be applied in children, states that for approximately every 20 minutes, stop close up activity or screen use; look 20 feet away and focus on a distant object across the room or outside for at least 20 seconds.”
Why routine screening matters
Medics highlight that parents should not wait for a child to complain before considering vision screening. Children may adapt to a vision problem without realising that what they see is not typical.
Dr Sanaa Shoker, Specialist Pediatrics at Medeor Hospital, Abu Dhabi, said an eye assessment can identify problems ranging from focusing difficulties to eye coordination issues and early myopia progression.
“Early diagnosis not only relieves symptoms but can also improve learning, classroom participation, confidence, and academic performance,” she said.
Shoker added that some conditions develop gradually and may not cause obvious symptoms in their early stages.
“Even when children do not complain of vision difficulties, regular vision screening remains important because many children are unaware that their vision is not normal,” she said.
Ophthalmologists recommend including vision checks as part of routine paediatric visits, with school-age children screened regularly and having their eyes checked every one to two years during their school years, or sooner if advised by their paediatrician or required by their institution.
A comprehensive eye examination is particularly important if a child develops symptoms, fails a vision screening, has learning difficulties or has a family history of significant eye disease.
With children spending increasing amounts of time on screens and childhood myopia rising globally, Shoker said routine eye health checks are becoming increasingly important.
For parents preparing their children for another school year, the message from doctors is therefore less about assuming every headache is an eyesight problem and more about recognising patterns, acting on persistent symptoms and not overlooking routine screening.
“Vision plays an important part of a child’s learning and development,” Shoker said, “and as children return to school, recognising a potential vision problem early, can ultimately improve their overall wellbeing.”
Source: Khaleej Times