Dr. Iris Matsukado, O.D., known to her patients as “Dr. Mats,” has cared for children’s eyes for more than 30 years. She focuses on pediatric eye care and examines children as young as 1 year old, along with patients of every age, at our Odessa office.
Eye exams for babies, toddlers and school-age kids. Young children can’t always tell you they don’t see well, and many vision problems don’t show up in a school screening. Dr. Mats uses age-appropriate tests that don’t require a child to read letters, so even a 1-year-old can have a thorough exam. She looks for lazy eye (amblyopia), crossed or wandering eyes (strabismus), nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism, and for the focusing and eye-teaming problems that can make reading and schoolwork harder than they should be. Finding these early, while a child’s vision is still developing, gives treatment the best chance to work. Learn more about our pediatric eye care and myopia management for kids.
Originally from Hawaii, Dr. Mats earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Creighton University. While in school she worked at Eyewear Hawaii, first in retail and then as a lab technician surfacing and finishing lenses, which gave her a hands-on understanding of how glasses are made. She received her Doctor of Optometry degree from the Illinois College of Optometry in 1992, with externships at the Sidney Hillman Health Center in Chicago and the Great Lakes Naval Training Center.
She then completed a residency in pediatrics, sports vision and vision therapy, and went on to teach as an instructor of optometry in primary care and in cornea and specialty contact lenses.
After moving to Palm Harbor, Dr. Mats provided vision therapy for the Toronto Blue Jays and later assisted with vision care for the Philadelphia Phillies. From 1992 to 2012 she served as a team optometrist with the American Optometric Association’s Sports Vision team at the Junior Olympics.
Outside the office, Dr. Mats competes in AAU karate with her team, “Moms of Mayhem,” serves as an AAU karate referee and has coached the Junior Olympic karate team. Her years of working with young athletes show in the exam room: she is patient, encouraging and good at helping kids feel at ease.