4 year old with squint/crossed eye

[trandy04]

Hi there, My almost 5 year old daughter has been in reception at school since September and has developed a squint/cross eye that goes inwards. I took her straight into the opticians and she has now been referred to the hospital. The optician did say this was fairly common and she will probably need glasses or patching.
However the waiting time for an appointment is up to 3 months!! And i can't help but worry myself silly. Its much worse after school and at the end of a school week and tonight its barely uncrossed since coming home. I just wonder if there is much i can do in the mean time to help. My daughter sees two of everything when it crosses so must be hard on her too.

My son is at risk of squint due to the difference in vision (good eye vs bad eye).

The squint is more pronounced at the end of the day and/or when tired - but to reassure you, 3 months isn't that long considering its only at the end of the day and they should be able to correct this with patches (if needed).

My son is noticeably better just having the glasses, so we are waiting next review (3rd review) to see if patches are needed or not.

Try not to worry as it is in hand now :)

You need to ring the hospital and push the appointment forward. Three months is a long time for a squint to go untreated.

I think 3 months is a long time to have double vision!

Did they not do a cycloplegic examination - so one where they put drops in to determine the prescription before referring. I would usually do a full refraction, prescribe glasses and then refer to the hospital eye service. It seems a bit odd that it hasn't happened. I don't generally prescribe for under 3's, but your daughter is 5........I think its worth contracting the optician again.

Karoleann: you sound like an expert - would you mind me asking about squints in younger children & babies, particularly surgical management? Sorry to hijack.

I took her to the high street optician (scrivens). She said that the hospital would be better placed to do a more detailed examination with drops etc. Her eye is not permanently crossed but its getting worse. I had originally been undecided if to see the gp too. The optician said I may get an appointment sooner if I was happy to travel beyond my local hospital so ive taken that option! Thanks for your replies

My GP referred my DD as she had a squint at 4. I was seen within 4 weeks. She was given glasses and did patching but glasses are always worn. Its always there when she takes them off.

She's now 12.

Update: I took DD back to the optician who looked at prescribing glasses for the time being. She felt glasses would not help in her case. However test was not done using drops.
Good news is appointment at the hospital is in two weeks.

Great news (for you and your daughter).