Eye diseases that neither children nor parents realise
Even if they have eye problems, children may not realise it in time. Even parents often can't detect the problem. As a result, treatment is delayed. According to the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) report, approximately 450 million children worldwide suffer from various eye diseases, most of which are preventable and curable. To prevent children's major eyes damage, it is very important to diagnose the disease at an early stage and treat it quickly. Here are seven common eye diseases that affect children, and the symptoms.
1. Refractive error
In this disorder, light does not focus properly on the retina. For this, the child sees blurry. The three most common refractive errors among children are:
· Astigmatism or a curved or irregular cornea
· Myopia or blurry vision for distant objects
· Hyperopia or blurry vision for near objects.
Symptoms: Repeatedly squinting or tilting the head, headaches and feeling of pressure in the eyes after studying for a long time or looking at a device, holding a book or mobile very close, sitting very close to the TV or computer.
2. Amblyopia or lazy eeye
In this disease, one eye becomes weak. Normal vision is impaired. The disease is not easily detected because the child usually relies on the good eye.
Symptoms: Problems with studying or playing, difficulty concentrating, often closing one eye, rubbing the eyes repeatedly, tilting the head repeatedly, squinting.
3. Binocular Vision Dysfunction (BVD)
In a normal state, two eyes focus on a scene together. In these cases, the coordination or axis of the two eyes is not right. The two eyes cannot work together. As a result, the brain gets confused, creating vision problems.
Symptoms: Anxiety or stress, dizziness, double vision, fatigue, headaches, sensitivity to light, difficulty with movement.
4. Convergence insufficiency
This is also a type of binocular vision problem that disrupts the coordination of the eye muscles. For this reason, the child cannot see near objects properly.
Symptoms: Lack of concentration, blurry vision, double vision, fatigue and headaches during studies, unwillingness to do homework, difficulty with movement or vertigo, blurry writing and trying to look by tilting the head.
5. Nystagmus
In this disease, uncontrollably the child's eyes move in all directions, making the vision blurry or unstable. Congenital nystagmus appears in the first few months of life, while acquired nystagmus appears after six months of birth.
Symptoms: The eyes move rapidly and continuously.
6. Pediatric cataracts
In this disease, a child's eyes develop cataracts. Every year 20,000 to 40,000 children worldwide are born with this disease.
Symptoms: Grey or white pupil colour, difficulty recognizing faces or objects, looking in a different direction and the eyes moving rapidly or continuously.
7. Strabismus or cross-eyes
An eye condition where both eyes cannot focus on a specific point properly, so one eye looks in a different direction from the other.
Symptoms: Wandering pupils, repeatedly squinting (especially in bright light), looking with a tilted head.