If your child has a squint who do you go to see about it?

[KTeepee]

I am pretty sure dd (9) has developed a squint recently (she had an eye test in September and they didn't mention anything about it then.)

I would like to get it checked out asap. HV has just left a message to suggest I take her back to the High St optician she has been going to but I don't want to waste my time with that if all they will do is refer her to an NHS Opthamologist.

Has anyone else got a child that developed a squint after the baby/toddler stage (or any other eye problem that required treatment other than glasses.) Where did you get referred to?

I'd go back to a smaller optician. Not Specsavers et al, but a smaller practice.

But surely she would need to be referred on elsewhere to decide if she needs surgery, etc?

Yes, but I guess she'll need the referral from teh optician. Otherwise, your GP.

And not all squints can be treated with surgery

Take her in to Boots. It is free and they will advise you where to go if they can't help. Or else see your GP for a hospital referral.

Nor do all squints need treating with surgery.

I'm really being lazy and trying to avoid to have to go to two appointments i suppose - is it really inevitable that Hv, etc won't refer her unless she goes to an Optician or GP first? I had a squint myself as a child which is why I am pretty sure that is what she has...

And I really hope she won't need surgery (but I did...)

I can understand your worry and the hassle of lots of traipsing around when you have kids but you can't put it off. It maybe she needs a patch for a few weeks. I had a patch when little, an op at 6 and wear glasses for reading, tv, etc now. We are at the hospital every 6 months for our youngest two to have their eyes checked and so far none have squints. Why don't you ring the surgery and ask who you need to see to have her checked? That may save you a trip somewhere.

Hi, I'm new here but know about this.You do need to get the optician to ask your GP to refer you to an orthoptist.
Our daughter started getting severe headaches when reading at about 12 1/2. I took her to an optician to see if she needed glasses. No she has perfect eyesight they said. Unconvinced we went to another optician who said she had convergence difficulties and said we needed to see an orthoptist.
The orthoptist said that there was indeed a convergence prob. caused by an invisible ( to us) exo squint. When dd focuses with both eyes together one eye wobbles in and out in an effort to maintain the focus and the strain causes headaches. Adjusting focal distance is also really tricky. So for the last nearly 3 years we've been going every month to check status and try various things to correct the problem. We have tried exs, patches and more recently botox as the condition has got worse over the last year - probably due to increased volume of reading/studing as GCSEs approach. After about 30 mins reading/writing/copying etc dd has double ( or more) vision. The first gentle botox treatment ( eye is anaesthetised then injection into coerner of eye to paralyse muscle)worked for a very short time. They decided to try a much bigger dose at the end of Aug so she could have a good start to the year. The botox works by paralysing the stronger muscle so the weaker one has an opportunity to relearn behaviour. Unfortunately the side effects were also very strong. her eye pointed completely in towards her nose, her eyelid drooped and she had constant double vision for a month. However, the eye is nearly back in its normal posisiton so we're hoping that the weaker muscle will have had ample chance to learn how to behave and that the good effect will last longer.
I would really urge you to try and sort this out sooner rather than later. Our dd is now in GCSE year and it is SO hard. At least once a week she comes home and goes straight to bed. She spends a lot of time in the nurse's room at school. Homework is a real issue as her eyes have pretty well stopped working for more than ten minutes without a break by the evening. It is really putting her off as you can imagine. She is a bright, bubbly, lively girl. I have been immensely proud of her over the last few months as no 15 year old wants to have double vision, look peculiar and not be able to keep up. It has been a really testing time for her and she has had such a positive attitude, joining a new theatre club a few days after the treatment and standing side on to people to talk to them. She says, well it's not going to stop me and people will have to take me as I am! I am really worried though as to how this is affecting her school work. She has to do everything so quickly before her eyes give out. She can use just one eye of course, but this has brought other problems.
Anyway, I just wanted to say that as far as I understand the younger it is treated the better.

I believe the GP has to make a referral to an opthalmologist/orthoptist at hospital, if a squint is confirmed.

Do you not have a childrens NHS eye clinic in your area? As I had a squint as a child, my kids were automatically referred to our eye clinic as a matter of course, just to monitor whether they developed squints too - which they didn't. They were discharged from there at around age 6 yrs to be seen annually at the local opticians. I'd suggest you go back to your optician who has reviewed your child's eye sight most recently and express your concerns to them. Otherwise go to your GP and get a proper referral done from there.

Yes we have a local children's eye clinic - it's sorting out the referral to get seen there. If HV doesn't phone back today I am going to try to talk to gp on the phone to see if she is willing to do a referral without seeing dd - to avoid having to drag dd out of school and without having to waste gp's time seeing her