Squint

Squint

• Introduction //
• Care

The exact cause of squint is not really known. The movement of each eye is controlled by six muscles. Each of these muscle acts along with its counterpart in the other eye to keep both the eyes aligned properly. A loss of coordination between the muscles of the two eyes leads to misalignment. This misalignment may be the same in all directions of gaze, or in some conditions the misalignment may be more in one direction of gaze, e.g., in squint due to nerve palsy. Sometimes a refractive error hypermetropia (long sight) may lead to inward deviation of the eye. Poor vision in an eye because of some other eye disease like cataract, etc. may also cause the eye to deviate. Therefore it is important in all the cases of squint, especially in children, to have a thorough eye checkup to rule out any other cause of loss of vision.

• Treatment: The primary goal of treatment is to preserve or restore as much visual function as possible. Treatment of squint varies depending on the exact type and cause of the strabismus. After a complete eye examination, including a detailed study of the inner parts of the eye, an ophthalmologist can recommend appropriate optical, medical or surgical therapy. Nearly 40% patients with squint can be cured by spectacles and/or eye exercises. However, a large majority require surgical treatment. The squint operations are very safe and should be done at the earliest. Generally if the eyes are not aligned for more than 6 months in a child, irreversible damage to the three dimensional vision occurs, which is only partly reversible. Squint surgeries are performed successfully even in children as young as 4 months.