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What Is Strabismus In Babies?

Strabismus In Babies

What if my child looks cross-eyed or his eyes seem to be wandering?

 

The problem may be strabismus (misaligned eyes) or amblyopia (lazy eyes) if your child’s eyes look crossed or misaligned. Talk to your doctor, who is likely to refer you to an ophthalmologist. Fortunately, if detected early, these conditions can be successfully treated.

Note that wandering or crossing now and then, up to about 4 months of age, is normal for a newborn baby’s eyes. He just gets the hang of his eyes working together. However, if the eyes of your baby seem to be crossed most of the time, or if it doesn’t get better, talk to your doctor.

What is strabismus?

 

Strabism is a lack of eye coordination. If the eyes of your child appear to be pointing in different directions or not focusing on the same object, strabismus may be the culprit.

Strabism is an issue with how the brain controls the eyes, not the muscles of the eyes. (That’s why experts don’t usually recommend strabism eye exercises.)

If your child has strabism and is not treated, his brain may begin to ignore the input from one of his eyes and eventually cause vision to deteriorate in the ignored eye. 

Image Source – Pixabay

Squint types

 

Squints are grouped into different sorts as pursues. These are the sorts of squint or misaligned eyes found in kids:

1. Squinting direction or turned eyes

  • Esotropia-When the eye turns inwards
  • Exotropia-When the eye turns outwards
  • Hypertropia-When the eye turns upwards
  • Hypotropia-When the eye turns downwards

2. Consistent squint:

The squint is available constantly while irregular squint is the point at which the squint is sporadically observed.

3. Manifest squint:

The eye turns just when it is open while idle squint is the point at which the eye is secured or shut.

4. Associative Squint:

For this situation the eyes have muscles working appropriately, yet the eyes are dependably uncommitted independent of the heading they swing to.

5. Incomitant Squint:

For this situation, the point of squint can change. At the point when the eye swings to one side, the eyes could be appropriately adjusted, however when the eye swings to one side, the squint is recognizable.

 

Causes Of Strabismus

 

At birth, strabism is sometimes present. The condition appears to be running in families.

Strabism can also appear in children with no family history–and if this is the case, it sometimes indicates a more significant problem with vision. (Disorders such as cerebral paralysis and Down syndrome increase the likelihood of strabism.)

Babies born prematurely or at low birth weight are at increased risk. It also appears that children who are farsighted are at higher risk. 

 

How do I know if there is strabism in my child?

 

Identifying a permanent squint in your child is relatively easy since the eyeballs are constantly deviating from each other. Remember, until the eyes and the brain coordinate and function as a team, your newborn will have some alignment problems. Most babies will have an intermittent squint that is healthy up to about six months as it will vanish before you know it. If it goes on beyond a year, it needs medical attention. Strabism can be identified by taking the baby’s front-facing photo where it is directly focused. This makes it possible to detect the deviation in the eyes. 

 

Effects of a squint on the vision of a baby

 

As an alert parent, if it is persistent or is noticed even after the baby is 3-4 months, you should not ignore a squint. Squint may cause persistent blurred vision or double vision if untreated. It may also lead to a lazy eye in which case the brain ignores the signals from the squinted eye that it receives. This does not allow a healthy vision for the child to develop. Since the visual effect is not good, the child may face isolation and in social situations will feel embarrassed. It is best to treat a squint at an early age as problems with vision can increase as the child grows in age. 

 

Babies ‘ Squint Eye Treatment

 

The following are the commonly recommended treatments for squint eyes in babies:

  • Eye muscle injections:

Although the effect of these injections can last only up to three months, they help weaken the muscles of the eye, making it easy for the eyes to align properly.

  • Surgery:

The eye muscles that control motion are corrected during surgery so that the eyes can align. Often, an operation is the last resort, particularly for babies.

  • Eyeglasses:

If the squint is caused by issues such as long-sightedness, then eyeglasses may be the right solution to treat this condition. 

Squint can affect the appearance of your child to ensure that throughout this journey you support his / her condition until a solution is found.

Strabism is an eye condition that, if diagnosed and treated in the early stages, can be effectively corrected. Seek immediate treatment and make sure that this does not cause your child to develop a negative self – complex.

 

Also Read:  What Is Amblyopia In Babies?

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