Visual impairment of many kinds is common in premature infants with low birth weight. The infant's visual system is quite plastic in the early stages, and early screening may help to discover treatable pathology. Clinical techniques are available that are not used in the routine examination given by the pediatrician. These include optokinetic nystagmus, preferential looking, and visually evoked potential. If such techniques were more widely employed where visual impairment is suspected, nonsurgical remedial intervention might be more successful.
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