Lazy eye, squints, glasses etc.....

[cheekyginger]

Im an orthoptist (binocular vision specialist) and a mummy.

I thought i would start this thread in case anyone was wanting any advice, re-assurance, opinions about any eye problems that you wee ones are having.

Hiya! its my first post here, but needed a little help.
My five year old Grandaughter had an eye test at school. Today she got a letter saying that she failed on one or more of the tests and she has an appt at the local health centre in 3 weeks.

She appears to have great eye sight, loves very fiddly things, and we have ever noticed ANYTHING. APart from when she was a newborn, she had what they described as eith Sunrise or sunset eyes. (sorry cant remember.)
Could it have anything to do with this.??

Thankyou in advance for all your help

sorry dads not sure what happended to the rest of my post!
Anyway it was meant to say - if the squint is fully corrected (ie straight) with just glasses on there is no need to do the surgery....it that what they found?
It may just be that the slightly stronger prescription helps your little one control the squint better.

Caz - its sunset eyes, its when the white of the eye is visible above the top of the coloured bit of the eye and can be a sign of hydrocephalus. Its due to the eyes being paralysed in the downwards position.

Did your daughter have hydrocephalus? Is her eye position normal now?

Regarding the eye test, is is possible that your daughter has one good and one bad eye, she may have been relying more on one eye than the other to see and that's why you've not noticed any problems.

It may also be that she has become slightly short-sighted in either eye.

It also may be that the test is wrong - the screening tests they do aren't that accurate.

Children's eye tests are free, you don't need to wait three weeks to be seen and a local optometrist (optician) can examine her eyes after school one day this week and hopefully put your mind at rest.

Hello, we have just been prescribed glasses for my 19 month old daughter who has a squint and longsightedness. We went to the opticians today to choose the frames. I expected her to be measured but we were told we just had to try some on and see which fitted! Is this right? I didn't know where to start and my daughter wouldn't even let us put a pair on her so I just left!

Hi.
I think I'm just being paranoid so thought I'd ask here before bothering my health visitor! My son is 18 months old and recently I've noticed when he goes up to new people, almost to say hi, he stand really close to them. He also gets really close to the tv when he watches. I didn't notice at ours as its higher up but at my mums he gets very close.
Everyone in my family wears glasses, I have since I was about 8. My husband has a very high prescription and has worn glasses since he was little as well.
I haven't really noticed anything else but was wondering if this could be a sign he is short sighted? Or is it too early to tell?
Thank you!

Just wondering if I could ask about my sons eyes. He is 8 and we recently noticed that one eye veers off when he is trying to focus, particularly if he is tired.
We took him straight to the opticians as my husband and I both wear glasses for astigmatism and the examiner told us just to help him practice going cross eyed every night for a month to encourage the eyes to converge.
We have been doing this but it feels very unsatisfactory to me, he isn't due a follow up for 6 months and the optician was generally quite non-committal.
Will this non-convergence sort itself with practice or will he need glasses eventually anyway?

Hi Cheekyginger,

Dd had surgery when she was 3 as she developed squints in both eyes (happened overnight, a few weeks after having surgery to have a tumour removed from behind her eardrum.... the drs claim its not linked..hmmmm). Cut long story short she had 4.5mm muscle cut from each eye and they are perfect now. She is 10 now. The scars on her eyes bother me. They get so red and inflamed sometimes (she has allergies so her eyes itch anyway). THe scars are quite raised. They are not noticable unless she looks to the sides. The surgeon said she could have further surgery after to reduce the scarring but i wouldnt put her through that again. He said we should wait and see as she grows they may reduce. I dont think they have. Do you think they ever will? The dr we saw has moved abroad and the other drs are quite non committal about the future of the scars...

Her eyesite and depth perception are perfect. They were concerned about depth perception but it seems this isnt anything to worry about.

Hi, do you know anything about chalazions? My DD has had one now since having a stye last summer. We're booked in for an op next week but I'm thinking of holding off. It's not very raised and it hasn't got any worse since January.. Do these things tend to go on their own or would you advise surgery? Thanks! Worried Mum. x

Hi Cheeky,
My 8y DD has a wandering eye which we first noticed about 3 years ago. We went through optician to eye unit at local hospital, where the consultant told us that it was nothing much but to return after a year to check. We did so last year and they discharged us. But lately I notice that it is worsening; the right eye doesn't travel and focus as the left one does, it is often further outside. I plan to get her referred again but am worried. Is there anything I/she can do eg exercises in the meantime?
Many thanks

Hi cheeky,
First off its fantastic to see that you have kept this thread up so long.
I am a 39 year old who was born with a lazy eye. I had surgery as a child and then again as a 15 year old to correct the turn in my eye (cosmetic).
My eye is starting to turn a little again when I am tired and I am considering seeing what options I have. My focus in Bo eyes is perfect but I under use my weak eye. My self diagnosis as best as I can describe is that when I close my strong eye my brain doesn't shut off the signal to it and I can see the inside of my eyelid overlaid on the otherwise fine vision of my weak eye. With 2 eyes open I occasionally have double vision, which alerts me to the fact that my eye is turning, but otherwise I am using the eye as I have reasonable peripheral vision on the weak side. I have heard of the brain switching off the signal from the weak eye but not the opposite. I am wondering if what I am describing is a common situation. I don't really have vision problems apart from the occasional double vision but I am conscious of my eye turn and very conscious that I only have one eye that I can rely on as I cannot read or drive etc if I close my good eye. Any thoughts or advice? Am planning to visit an ophthalmologist but haven't had brilliant results in the past.
Living in the Netherlands.
Thanks!

Im back!

Thanks for the help Karoleann!

I'll try not to repeat anything Karoleann has said but might be a bit of overlap

Hi Rebeccas7023, the only other thing i would add, is to ask you to keep your appointment at the eye clinic. Orthoptists are best at dealing with treating vision that is lazy. It sounds as though she may have amblyopia of her left eye. Likely caused by a stronger prescription for this eye. General guidelines for treatment are glasses full time for 12 weeks. If vision has improved then cont with glasses only. Patching is only started if/when the vision stops improving with the glasses. Your LO's vision is not too bad so even if she does need patching it would only be 2-3 hours per day. Good luck

Hi Vickytee,
The only thing i would say is not to worry too much. Give the glasses a try. Sounds like your wee one has an latent convergent squint. Which is actually quite common. (Its an underlying drift of the eye when one eye is covered). If your LO isnt taking to the glasses then it is likely the orthoptist will stop them in the future. The glasses will do no harm.

Hi dadwheresmum
Well done you for fostering . Your little ones prescription can change without the actual level of vision changing....if that makes sense. Children require annual glasses checks to keep up with any change associated with growing.
The last surgeon done the right thing. Its not that the are disagreeing with the previous Dr its just that the stronger prescription may make the squint smaller and surgery should therefore be postponed to see what effect the new glasses have on the size of the squint. Hope that makes some sense Sounds like your LO has a partially accommodative squint i.e glasses make the squint smaller but not straight.

Hi Nicknamefail,

Nystagmus is a tricky one. If you are not seeing it as much then this is a good thing The steadier the eye the better the vision.

The only way to be sure is to be patient and as she gets older the orthoptist will be able to assess her vision more accurately.

Hi cazbumbaz,

Try not to panic. Just keep your next appointment and get checked.

It's not that i am against optometrists (my DH is one!), but its best if you stay in the system you are in. Rather than chopping and changing.

As for you not noticing any problems, that's why screening is so important. Many eye problems would go undetected if it wasn't for vision screening programs.

The sunset eye issue as a child could be purely coincidental.

Hi Kitty3777

Yes, the fit is initially simply trying the glasses on her face. With kids this young it may take a few attempts! They will have to try and measure the distance between your LO's pupils, but this can be fairly approximate at this age. If you have a prescription voucher from the hospital you can take that to any optician. Have a shop around and see if you find one that the staff are particularly good with children. Good luck.

Hi PrincessBaker,

Standing close to things can be a total red herring when it comes to vision problems. However if you have a family history of glasses from a young age it would be worth contacting your HV and getting referred. Its not urgent by any means but good to get into the system.

Hi Benfranklingates,

Sounds like you son may need some structures convergence exercises. May be worth requesting a referral to your nearest orthoptic department so that he can be assessed more thouroughly and you can be given some more information regarding proper exercises!

Hi randgirl,

Im not an Ophthalmologist but i work closely with them. I certainly havent heard of anyone having surgery to reduce their scars??? That certainly doesnt mean its not possible. Do they bother her? The only reason i ask is you could leave it up to her to pursue this when she is older. If the scarring hasnt reduced through her teenage years (when she'll so most of her growing) then she can decide if she wants further surgery when she is older.

Hi grayal,

If its not causing any discomfort and not interfering with her vision then its totally up to you. If you are not comfortable with her having surgery then you could postpone it. However if the Dr's are saying that she should go ahead with it then i would go with their opinion. Good luck.

Hi Propitia,

Sounds like an intermittent divergent squint (does that sound familiar at all?). These squints can worsen over time. I wouldnt like to recommend exercises online, best to seek re-referral and get a full assessment and advice

Hi Leeroy66,
Great to have an adult question!! Were you patched as a child? Sometimes when children with squints are patched the vision improves but there is also a risk that we reduce the suppression of the squinting eye. Suppression simply means the brain suppresses/ignores the squinting eye to prevent double vision. If this suppression is very weak then people can start to appreciate double vision.
Although you have had previous surgery there is nothing to suggest you couldnt have it again. Good luck with your appointment and post again if you have anymore questions

Hi cheekyginger
Hope you had a good holiday. My son is 4yrs old he has a squint that alternates between eyes. Which is mainly going outwards. He is being seen by the hospital. The thing is he had an eye test which showed a weak prescription but the optician thought he doesn't need glasses however he is always bumping in things and his nursery have also mentioned this.
His prescription is
+1.00 -75 180 (right eye)
+0.75 -1.00 180 (left eye)
Would just like your opinion on wether you think he would benefit from having glasses. Thank you

Hi mumoftaiba,

Had a lovely holiday

This is a really mild prescription wouldn't be too worried. Has he had the drops in his eyes at his hospital appointment? They would likely have carried out a glasses check as well, and if the hospital haven't prescribed anything then i would go with the flow.

His clumsiness may just be coincidental this prescription would be very unlikely to cause clumsiness etc.

What a great thread! My DS has seen a nurse and a doctor who have said he has a slight squint in his left eye. I am driving myself mad with worry that it is something sinister and he's suffering while we wait for an consultant appointment we think its bothering him as he closes his eyes for a few seconds every so often and opens then after and carries on. Am I over reacting? Thanks in advance any advice gratefully received!. I think its slightly better lately but I could just be used to seeing it. He has started closing his eyes for a few seconds when

Is watching telly that should say! Silly phone! He is 20 months and from a family of short-sighted people,DH has worn glasses from 5 and I am long sighted. Thanksfor reading.

Hi cheekyginger

Thank you for a great thread. I've got some concerns about my 2.4 year old DS. The other day in the car he suddenly said 'oh, my eye not working!' and repeated it a few times, then said, 'oh working now!'

He frequently says his eye hurts and rubs at his eyes, also says 'there's water in my eye'. He is quite a clumsy toddler, constantly running into things - doorways, a tree, bouncing off walls etc - and has had numerous blows/bruises/eggs on his face and head. This seems to have gotten worse recently.I've also noticed him squinting one eye when he's looking at the TV and nursery have said he seems very uncoordinated recently and has been holding things like jigsaws right up to his face. He also sometimes just falls over for no discernable reason. He often gets crusty eyes, especially with a cold.

I've seen the doctor today who said he was probably just clumsy but as I had a squint corrected as a child (patch and eyedrops) and wear glasses for short sightedness and astigmatism has agreed to refer him to the opthamologist. However, he can see and point to/name things in books, colours etc and I had no concerns about his vision until the last few weeks.

Erm, not actually sure what my question is...just a bit worried about him. Does this sound like a vision problem is likely? Could he suddenly be having problems with his vision now as the clumsiness does seem to have increased over the last couple of months?

Does anyone know how long the wait generally is to be seen once you're referred?

Thanks!

hi Cheekginger, DS has another eye check up yesterday,no change in this prescrption this time, how come when they correct his vision they only correct it a certain amount, he is able to read the 4th line of the eye chart with right eye and 5th line with left eye with his glasses on, is there a reason why this would not be corrected more, he has extreme myopia (-18) and extreme astigmatism (-4.5) ,I can read futher down without my glasses.

Also they mention changing to contact lenses in the next year, what would the benefits of these be for a child of 9 with the above?

Last question, he complains of sore eyes and pains in his head when he reading or writing for any length of time, aslo his eyes are blurring as well, they can not find any reason for this, would this just be eye strain?

Thanks in advance for any information you can provide

Hi cheekyginger, ds1 is 7 and a half. Today he has had a routine check up (I wear glasses so the children all started at the opticians at around 2). Today the optician has said that ds1 is longsighted, that this is common in children of his age but as he is behind at school in his reading (he asked how he was doing with his reading and his is improving, but behind a majority if us peers) he thought that trying glasses would be an idea as his eyes maybe getting tired due to the longsightedness. We pick the glasses up next week and he is to wear them at school only for now and we go back in weeks for a check up. Is this common? I am kind of surprised, totally did not expect him to need glasses!

Hi Cheeky ginger,
i am so glad i stumbled on this thread. My daughter is 17m and we saw too different consultants today for a squint, one said she just needed watching, another said she had a 'slight' squint in her right eye, and gave us a prescription, sph is 1.75 in right eye, 1.25 in left. but i'm confused, as 1 said she didn't need glasses,1 said she did, i just wondered what you thought? also, we weren't told if she should wear them constantly or just if reading etc?
do you think it could correct itself or will glasses be a permenant thing?
thank you so much for any advice!

Hi cheeky ginger.
My son failed his reception eye test. I took him to the optician who has referred him to an orthoptist . His result were: Right eye Vision 6/12, sphere +1.25, cyl n/a axia n/a d prism n/a dva 6/ 12. Left eye vision 6/18, sphere +0.5, cyc -0.5 axis 90 dva 6/ 18. This is all very new to me, wondered if you hand any idea what the issue may be or the next step. Is a orthoptist referral quite normal. Thank you very much for your help

Hi... Cheeky ginger. Would really appreciate your advice. My 1 yr old daughter has recently (past 1 mth) started intermittently squinting in her left eye- few seconds at a time but about 15-20 times a day. I think she is doing it more frequently over past 2 wks. Am awaiting an appt with ophthal team. What should I expect at this appt? Also is there any ophthalmologist who specialises in this and you would recommend in London?

Hi,

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