Common Pediatric Eye Problems during Childhood

Eye problems are one of the worst nightmares in human life. Even though some eye problems come during adulthood, some develop early in life. It is thus advisable to take your children to the optometrist regularly from an early age to ensure they have a variety of tests, screenings and have the health of their eyes monitored.

Several pediatric eye problems are common during childhood. You can treat most of them if detected early. Luckily, there is a professional eye doctor in Scarborough.

Ensure you take your child to Dr. Allyson Tang, Optometrist in M1V 0G2 for vision checking and treatment if there are any eye problems.

Your child gets proper care so that their vision develops appropriately and, most importantly, prevents severe life-threatening conditions from occurring. By ensuring your child is free of eye problems, you save yourself a lot of peace of mind, time, and money.

Popular Pediatric Eye Problems during Childhood

Pediatric Cataract

Although many people associate cataracts with older people, a child can be born with the condition. It causes opacification of the ocular lens. Depending on its size and location, it may affect light passing to the retina, resulting in blurry vision.

Early detection and treatment are critical in infants and young children to restore normal vision development. Common signs of a cataract are a white patch in the pupil and misalignment of the eye. You can only treat cataracts that obstruct vision with surgery. If the disorder is not severe, it can just be monitored. Pediatric cataracts also lead to strabismus and amblyopia.

Ptosis

Ptosis is also known as a drooping eyelid. Children can either be born with the condition or acquire it after birth. Neurological diseases can also trigger the condition.

A droopy eyelid may block the vision in one eye, causing blurry vision in the affected eye. This condition causes lazy eyes and may lead to vision loss if left untreated. The condition also leads children to develop a chin-up head position as a coping mechanism. If the ptosis is advanced, surgery is the only fix.

Nystagmus

It is an involuntary, rhythmic oscillation of eyes, either rotary, side-to-side, or up and down. A child may be born with the problem or acquire it later in life. Abnormal binocular fixation during childhood s usually linked to several eye disorders and neurological diseases.

Strabismus

It’s also called crossed eyes. It refers to the misalignment of eyes in which one eye or both may turn outward, inward, upward, or downward. If not treated early, it leads to amblyopia and can cause permanent blindness if not treated at an early stage. Depending on the cause and type, treatment entails eyeglasses, Botox injection, eye-patching therapy, prisms, or surgery.

Amblyopia

It is a condition associated with poor vision development. It’s popularly known as lazy eye. It may occur when common eye issues like refractive error, strabismus, droopy eyelids, or cataracts are not treated. It develops on either eye or both eyes.

It happens when the visual function of the brain fails to function normally. It weakens the eye and can lead to severe problems. If detected early, amblyopia responds appropriately to treatment. Amblyopia therapy may include the use of glasses, eye drops, patching, or in some cases, surgery.

Others include:

• Genetic eye disease
• Pediatric glaucoma
• Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP)
• Pediatric ophthalmology

Conclusion

If you notice signs of one of the common pediatric problems, take them to a reputable optometrist in Scarborough. You can also visit Dr. Allyson Tang, Optometrist in Toronto, ON M1V 0G2, Canada. She is very experienced and will handle your child professionally.

However, the optometrist does not offer surgery, but they can refer you to a reputable eye surgeon if your child has a pediatric eye problem requiring surgery. It would be best to regularly take your child to an eye doctor for continuous eye check-ups and monitoring. Call us or Book your appointment Now!