Seeing Through New Eyes - Changing the Lives of Children with Autism, Asperger Syndrome and other Developmental Disabilities Through Vision Therapy

Dr Kaplan offers an accessible introduction to the treatment of visual dysfunction, a significant but neglected problem associated with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and other developmental disabilities. He identifies common autistic symptoms such as hand-flapping, poor eye contact and tantrums as typical responses to the confusion caused by vision disorder. He explains the effects of difficulties with 'ambient vision' - the function that is usually impaired in autistic people - which include a lack of spatial awareness and trouble with coordination, and gives guidance on how to identify the visual deficits of nonverbal children, select prism lenses that will alter the visual field, and create individually tailored programmes of therapy. Seeing Through New Eyes is essential reading for parents of autistic children, professionals in the fields of autism or optometry and ophthalmology and for educators.