One white eye one red eye

[Helentres]

Hi. I've recently noticed my son has one white eye and one red eye in photographs taken with a flash. He also has a squint (left eye turns out), could this be the reason for the white eye?

I was having a quick look on google and it says that both the squint and the white eye could be retinoblastoma :S

Has anyone else had this experience with their child? Is it anything to worry about or should I just stay off google :S

Hello :) You should definitely get it checked out because the possibility of retinoblastoma is real and photographs like that are the way a lot of cases are caught early.

That said, there are other less serious conditions that cause similar appearance in photos, and it could also just be his squint. Are the photos that worry you from a phone? The LED flash on phone cameras can cause it too, when there's no problem at all.

We had a couple of dodgy pics of dd when she was just under two. We rang an opthamologist (we're not in UK so process may be different) and they gave us an emergency appointment right away. They took it very seriously. The doctor looked at the pics, said they were 'concerning' and put drops in dd's eyes to dilate her pupils.

She had a good thorough look by shining her light into each pupil - this was no fun as dd's eyelids had to be held open while I held her down. But it was over in five minutes and there was absolutely no problem with dd's eyes. The relief was immediate and immense and I was so glad we'd had it checked properly so that we knew for sure that all was well.

The doctor said she sees a lot more worried parents with white-eye pictures than she used to, which is down to awareness raising and also the ubiquitousness of smartphones with cameras using LED lights.

I hope you have your son checked and that you go away from the appointment with peace of mind that he is fine

Hi, thanks for the advice. Ill defo be ringing up forst thing Monday to get him seen. He has an appt with an ophthalmologist in sept anyway for his squint but ill tell them about the white eye and see if they'll bring the appt forward. Just wasnt sure whether I should've waited till sept or try and get in sooner but after reading what you said I think it's defo worth going sooner :) thank you x

You're very welcome - I'm no expert but can remember well how very worried I was when I started googling and all the retinoblastoma stuff came up. I hope they give you an earlier appointment so you can stop worrying about it. It is very likely to be fine, but as you say definitely worth having checked out. Best Wishes x

Yes, defo get it checked out, but yes, the squint can also cause this so don't lose sleep over it.

I took ds to the eye hospital for a check up when he was about 1y for the same thing. All was fine.

My ds had the same thing on all his pictures, turns out (after major panic by ex) that it was down to ds lazy eye but its better to be safe than sorry and get it checked out.

Rang the hospital today, they're going to see him at the beginning of September. Wish it could be sooner though. His squint is in his left eye yet the white eye in pictures is his right eye, so not too sure if it is his squint or not. Either way ill let you know how we get on. Thanks for all your help

It would depend on which eye was looking directly at the camera as to which appears red and which appears white.

In the meantime you could take him to a High Street optician as they can see whether there is a bigger problem or not. It is free for children, you only need to make an appointment.