Eyelid Surgery for Children With Ptosis
No feature is as tell-tale as the eyes. When someone tells you that you are looking tired, upset, or angry, they are most likely looking at the story your eyes are telling. But if you are suffering from a condition known as ptosis, your eyes may be lying. This droopy eye syndrome is caused by the weight of an eyelid which in turn causes the lid to droop in over the pupil interfering with vision. It often happens in older people but it can exist in children as well. Eyelid surgery can fix this.
It can be congenital, which means a child is born with it or it can be acquired, and in either situation it is imperative to diagnose and treat as soon as possible. Left untreated without eye surgery, the condition not only interferes with vision but it can hinder vision from developing, so it is important to quickly learn all of the options for treatment and employ them immediately.
If it is congenital, baby ptosis is likely to be found during a newborn screen before the child even leaves the hospital, though a mild condition may be mistaken as an inherited feature. Sometimes the eyes can be strengthened with patches, but if that is not the case surgery will need to be done.
The most common diagnostic symptom is when a child needs to tilt his head back in order to see. If you notice your child doing this, he may have the vision blockage, and he should be taken to a doctor immediately to investigate the issue. It is common for a child to be screened at school for vision and referred to a professional for further investigating due to screening failure. If a child is given a regular screening and fails, he may be given prescription glasses as is the case with most failed eye exams, but because ptosis is often thought of as an old man disease, regular optometrist may overlook the possibility. If your child was recently prescribed glasses, but they seem to hurt his eyes, give him headaches, or make his eyes water, he may have failed the screening due to the lid blocking the pupil and not because of an actual vision deficit.
For a true condition of the lid hanging over the pupil, surgery is generally needed to correct the vision issue. Because a child's vision is constantly strengthening and adjusting from birth to around age six, left uncorrected this situation can hinder development and may not be able to be restored. Trust your doctor's suggestion for eyelid surgery for your child; waiting it out will contribute to underdeveloped and impaired eyesight.
It can be congenital, which means a child is born with it or it can be acquired, and in either situation it is imperative to diagnose and treat as soon as possible. Left untreated without eye surgery, the condition not only interferes with vision but it can hinder vision from developing, so it is important to quickly learn all of the options for treatment and employ them immediately.
If it is congenital, baby ptosis is likely to be found during a newborn screen before the child even leaves the hospital, though a mild condition may be mistaken as an inherited feature. Sometimes the eyes can be strengthened with patches, but if that is not the case surgery will need to be done.
The most common diagnostic symptom is when a child needs to tilt his head back in order to see. If you notice your child doing this, he may have the vision blockage, and he should be taken to a doctor immediately to investigate the issue. It is common for a child to be screened at school for vision and referred to a professional for further investigating due to screening failure. If a child is given a regular screening and fails, he may be given prescription glasses as is the case with most failed eye exams, but because ptosis is often thought of as an old man disease, regular optometrist may overlook the possibility. If your child was recently prescribed glasses, but they seem to hurt his eyes, give him headaches, or make his eyes water, he may have failed the screening due to the lid blocking the pupil and not because of an actual vision deficit.
For a true condition of the lid hanging over the pupil, surgery is generally needed to correct the vision issue. Because a child's vision is constantly strengthening and adjusting from birth to around age six, left uncorrected this situation can hinder development and may not be able to be restored. Trust your doctor's suggestion for eyelid surgery for your child; waiting it out will contribute to underdeveloped and impaired eyesight.
Source...