Reasons for eye defects in children

Thinking about the fact that, eye issue is a sensitive problem in adults, I could not stop thinking about how little children will feel if they have a similar eye problem, and since these kids are unable to talk, how do we even know there is an eye issue with them.

There is a high chance that eye-related problems could develop at the early stage of childhood, so parents need to be aware of the signs of baby eye issues, as this will help them work on it on time.

During the first six months of a baby's life, there is a rapid development of the baby's eye, and this is how it happens, at birth, the eyes are sensitive to bright light, and their vision is not so sharp. Then, they become able to focus on objects that appear 10 inches away from their face, and during the first month, their eyes may not be coordinated well enough. When a baby gets to 5-6 months of age, his depth of perception and color vision will gradually and significantly improve as time goes on.

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Here are some signs of vision problem that requires careful examination once noticed in a child, and the earlier it is realized, the better it is to get treated.

• Problem with visual coordination: The eyesight of a baby develops gradually, their eyes should be able to track objects together after three months, but if their eyes fail to do so, it may be an issue with visual coordination.

• Extremely sensitive to light: Babies are normally sensitive to bright light when they are born, but when they are overly sensitive, it is a common sign of eye problems in newborns. However, give it time before you conclude, because if it stays the same after a month or two, it could be as a result of increased eye pressure.

• Tearing excessively: When babies cry, it is normal that they produce tears, but when your baby begins to shed tears excessively even when they are not crying, it could be as a result of a blocked tear duct, and this condition is called EPIPHORA.

• When the eye turns inward or outward: It may be normal for a baby's eyes to appear crossed during the first month of birth, but if the eye continues to turn outward or inward after the first month, it could signify a problem.

The signs mentioned above generally help us to know when something is going wrong, here are some common eye problems that babies may develop as they grow.

Amblyopia: Also known as lazy eye, is when there is a vision reduction in one eye as a result of visual development, it happens when one eye becomes weak than the other one at the stage of infancy or childhood, it is the weaker eye usually called the lazy eye, that wanders inward or outward.

Refractive errors: Most often of 3 types, which means the light entering into the eye fails to bend appropriately as a result of the eye's sharpness. When this happens, it may be impossible for the eye not to focus images properly on the retina, and what the baby sees will then appear blurry.

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• Astigmatism: When the eye is not totally round, the light that is entering into it does not bend properly, as a result, there is a creation of a blurry or wavy vision. It can occur alongside myopia and hyperopia.

• Myopia: Also known as shortsightedness or nearsightedness, an affected child can see objects that are nearby very clearly but objects that are far away appear blurry.

• Hyperopia: This is the opposite of myopia, also known as farsightedness. Affected children will be able to better focus on faraway objects than those that are closer.

Strabismus: This condition is characterized by one eye turning inward, outward, upward, or even downward causing misalignment of the eye. It could result in lazy eye or sometimes double vision in children.

Double Vision: Happening as a side effect of strabismus, the baby may see one object in two different places at the same time.

**Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP): This is an eye disease that affects premature infants sometimes, it is caused due to the abnormal development of blood vessels in the retina. Often starts mildly, but gets progressive as time goes by.

**Congenital stationary night blindness [CSNB]: This condition is rare and usually an inherited condition, which makes the adaption to a low-light situation very difficult as a result of impaired photoreceptor transmission.

** Genetic eye disease**: There is a high possibility that a baby would inherit eye issues from any member of the family, in this case, early evaluation is necessary.

Considering the fact that, these children are so innocent why should they have to go through such discomfort? Here are possible reasons that could make a child develop eye issues.

Causes of congenital eye problems in babies.

• Genetic disorders is usually the most common cause of visual impairment in children.

• The eye is a strong target for fetal alcohol syndrome.

• Infection.

• Hard drugs like cocaine are highly associated with vascular disruption in children.

*Mothers with diabetes have an increased chance of having children who have optic nerve hypoplasia.

https://prasadnetralaya.com/eye-problems-in-babies/

https://patient.info/doctor/eye-problems-in-babies

https://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditions/eyes/Pages/Warning-Signs-of-Vison-Problems-in-Children.aspx

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/signs-of-vision-problems-in-babies

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3960696/