Paediatric ophthalmology
Specialty of Ophthalmology
What is paediatric ophthalmology?
This is the medical specialty that prevents, diagnoses and treats diseases that affect children's eyes and visual health. Good ophthalmic care is essential during childhood, as these are the years when visual problems may appear while the eyes of growing and may affect their future development. Children's eyes are constantly growing until they are about 8 years old.
Diseases that are treated with children's ophthalmology
The most common conditions which affect eyesight during childhood are:
- congenital diseases
- amblyopia (commonly known as lazy eye)
- strabismus
- inflammation
- infection
It has been shown that academic performance can be significantly affected by vision problems that have not been properly diagnosed or treated, harming the child’s capacity to learn and develop vital skills.
When to see a paediatric ophthalmologist
Eye exams are essential throughout childhood. In the first few months of life, an eye examination can detect serious diseases such as retinoblastoma. Strabismus and eye motility problems in particular are diagnosed from the ages of one to four.
After the age of four, refractive visual disorders such as myopia (nearsightedness) and hyperopia (farsightedness) are the most commonly treated pathologies, in addition to prevention or treatment of amblyopia or lazy eye.
Annual check-ups are necessary up to the age of 15, to check the stability of the child’s vision and the development of the eye organs.
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Mr Saurabh Jain
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Mr Robert Henderson
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