Children are not just small adults. They cannot always say what is bothering them. They cannot always answer medical questions and are not always able to be patient and cooperative during a medical examination. Pediatric ophthalmologists know how to examine and treat children in a way that makes them relaxed and cooperative.
How is the eye of the child different?
Just as a particular doctor is required for your child’s general health, even the eyes of a child need specialist care. It is because the considerations in terms of eye care are entirely different from those in adults. The reasons for this are as follows:
- The brain-eye connections are not fully made, so any deprivation of vision in early childhood, if it remains uncorrected, can result in lazy eye or amblyopia. This means that the visual potential of the child becomes limited, and even proper corrective glasses cannot help in later help. Amblyopia therapy is critical in the early years of life
- The congenital anomalies or disorders of development show up in the early years of life. These can range for refractive errors which merely require corrective glasses, to squintor misalignment of eyes, congenital nasolacrimal duct block, ptosis or lid droop and even cataract and glaucoma.
- Infants who are born premature, of low birth weight or who have a prolonged tumultuous stay in the new-born nursery, are at risk for a disease called Retinopathy of Prematurity, RoP. RoP is potentially vision-threatening and must be screened for in these high-risk
- In settings of malnutrition, children are susceptible to Vitamin A deficiency, and its attendant eye problems including dry eye, corneal ulcers, and even blindness. Fussy and choosy eaters may also sometimes be deficient in some micronutrients despite being healthy and well-fed otherwise.
- Children, because of their active lifestyle and playing outdoors are more prone to eye allergies and trauma.
- TV viewing, increased screen time and video games have given rise to a particular set of concerns in this age group.
- There is a set of eye tumors and malignancies that are typical of infancy and childhood like retinoblastoma.