Children are often found to have eye problems during their early years. Because they are not always able to tell us that they have a problem, detecting significant eye problems in childhood is challenging. The visual system develops rapidly in infancy and if there is a problem which interferes with this development one or both eyes may never come to see properly. There are screening processes in place with 6 week examinations, preschool and school vision checks which often detect pathology, but if you suspect a problem with your child’s eyes seek advice from a Paediatric Ophthalmologist.
There is a huge variety of eye problems which are discovered in early childhood. Some of the more common which present to us include;
- Strabismus – squint
- Amblyopia – lazy eye
- Ptosis – droopy eyelids
- Watery eyes – epiphora
- Refractive errors – myopia, hypermetropia, astigmatism