Does Strabismus Require Surgery?

Strabismus can take a lot of forms, from crossed eyes to one eye turning inward, downward, or in another direction (i.e. a lazy eye). Ultimately, when your child gets diagnosed with this condition, it means their eyes don’t line up the way they should. 

They’re not alone. Around one in 20 kids lives with this condition. 

That doesn’t mean you should let it go untreated, though. In fact, if you want to help your child avoid eye surgery, prompt care makes all the difference. Fortunately, our team offers strabismus diagnosis and treatment at our Benjamin Optical offices throughout New York City. 

If you think your child might have strabismus, come see us as soon as you can. 

Why fast treatment matters

If you let strabismus go unchecked in your child, it can cause vision loss and depth perception challenges. Plus, the sooner you can intervene to help their eyes work the way they should, the better their outcome will be. If your child does end up needing strabismus surgery, getting it at a younger age increases the procedure’s likelihood of success. 

Pay attention to how your child’s eyes align. If you think they might have a lazy eye or crossed eyes, don’t wait to visit us at any of our Benjamin Optical offices. We can use several different tests to evaluate your child’s eyes, including:

• A visual acuity test
• A retinal exam
• A corneal light reflex test

With these tools, we can both diagnose strabismus and determine the precise amount of misalignment in each eye. This allows us to tailor treatment to your child’s unique needs.

Treating strabismus without surgery

We always try conservative strabismus treatment before exploring surgery. Usually, that means having your child wear glasses that are specifically designed to help the problem eye return to proper alignment.

In some cases, wwe might also recommend that your child temporarily wear a patch over their better eye. This strengthens the muscles in the misaligned eye, helping to correct strabismus. 

Additionally, we can teach you and your child certain eye coordination exercises (orthoptics) that you can practice at home. As you strengthen the muscles that align their eyes, you can improve their strabismus. 

We start with all of these efforts. If your child’s eye alignment doesn’t improve, though, we may recommend surgery. Remember, the younger they get it, the more likely they are to have an ideal outcome. 

Long story short, time is of the essence when it comes to treating strabismus. To set up an appointment so we can evaluate the alignment of your child’s eyes and get them started with treatment, if necessary, call any of our offices, or book an appointment online today.