Squint is a misalignment of the two eyes so that both the eyes are not looking in the same direction. This misalignment may be constant, being present throughout the day, it can also be intermittent.
Does my child have squint? In a child, the parents may notice the deviation of eyes. At times it may just be an error of judgement as many a cases might just be pseudo-squint due to either telecanthus or epicanthus.Therefore it has to be evaluated by a squint specialist.A true squint in any child who is more than 3-4 months old must be taken seriously and should be evaluated preferably by squint specialist.
What if I don’t get my squint corrected? When the eyes are not aligned properly, each of the eyes is focusing on a different object and sends signal diffently to the brain. These two different images reaching the brain lead to confusion and may have either of the two effects: • A child would ignore the image coming from the deviated eye, and thus sees only one image, so the squinting eye become lazy and lose vision. • An adult cannot ignore the image from either eye, and therefore has double vision. This can be very annoying and may interfere with work.
What is occlusion therapy?
Occlusion therapy is a very important part of squint management. In this therapy the non squinting eye is patched for longer time than the other one, so that vision in squinting eye can be stimulated.
What is the treatment for squint?
The aims of treatment of squint in order of importance are: • Preserve or restore vision • Straighten the eyes • Restore binocular vision Surgery for squint has now become minimally invasive with the advent of Fornix based incision. The purpose of surgery is to align the eyes, so that both eyes can focus on same image simultaneously, surgery for squint is like balancing a weighing balance either the squinting eye muscle can be operated to restore balance or both eye scan be operated. Generally minimal rest is required after surgery but some redness can remain for a few weeks.