Prevalence of Visual Impairment in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Mini Review

Abstract

The association between Visual Impairment (VI) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) remains an important research topic among children suffering from developmental delays and disabilities. The objective of this mini review was to evaluate previous literature on prevalence and etiology of visual impairment, frequency of visual impairment and types of refractive errors associated with autism in children. Previous researches on ASD found that the visual impairment is one of the major factors in autistic children. Hence measurement of vision screening in autism disorder is necessary for better explanation of the problem. The etiologies of visual impairment in autistic children were associated with refractive error and strabismus. Identification of refractive error in ASD children and providing them suitable corrective lenses may improve their visual functions and help in their daily activities. With these findings in mind, there is an urgent need to investigate further in this area and developed more detailed research. The findings would help optometrist, ophthalmologist in understanding types of visual impairment in autism school children.