Fixing the inner problem of strabismus: which direction is best?
Written on May 25, 2007 – | by Lois (admin) |
Eunice from Singapore writes:
Hi, Greetings from Singapore. I am very worried about my son age 3+ now, his eyes is always drifting away when he’s tried or ill. I guess that called Strabismus, right ? Any cured or treatment for him, he’s so young at age. i consulted a eye specialist , he suggest operations to aline the eyeballs, but i am much worried its just a cosmetic appearance and the inner problem not sloved, please advise.
Eunice, this is the difficult question those of us with strabismus face. Many of us have felt very alone as we struggled with which way to go. Thankfully we are finding each other now on places like Eyes Apart. But it is still confusing because eye care professionals don’t agree on what is the best treatment for strabismus.
The thinking behind aligning the eyes as perfectly as possible by surgery is that it enables the brain to direct them together as a unit more easily. On the other hand, doctors who treat strabismus with special exercises (vision therapy) believe that the solution is re-teaching the brain how to direct the eyes. There is lots of controversy about these two most popular treatments for strabismus.
The one thing most everyone is in agreement on is that treatment needs to start early. If treatment can be provided when a child is young, before his or her vision patterns have matured, it is easier to establish correct vision.
You can talk with people who have strabismus or other parents who have faced similar questions in our email support group. See Eyes Apart Strabismus Support Group for more information.
Photo credit: G�zde Otman
2 Responses to “Fixing the inner problem of strabismus: which direction is best?”
By katherine on Dec 30, 2008 | Reply
I have a three year old daughter with strabismus and far sighted vision. her docter has told us that she is losing her pherifiel vioson and needs surgery. should we get a second opion even though our doctor is from childrens hospital?
By Jassie on Aug 16, 2009 | Reply
I have strabismus and was far sighted since I was a kid. I had undergone surgery in both eyes when I was 6yrs old. I am now 27 and have not been wearing glasses since 13yrs old. I am able to see perfectly well without glasses and others often assume that I have perfect eyesight. Although you cannot really see my eyeballs wandering away now unless you really look closely, it’d affected my ability to perceive depth, ie. I cannot see 3D images. Recently I went to watch Up in 3D and was wondering what is so special when I realised I was the only one who cannot see the effects. Sad.