Strabismus can be a real disaster for the child, so parents try to take measures against the detected disease as soon as possible. This is correct - the earlier the exact diagnosis is made, the easier it is to cure the patient. However, sometimes strabismus also occurs in adults. Treatment in these cases is more difficult, but can also be effective if the doctor is well qualified.
Strabismus in children under 7 years of age is sometimes accompanied by amblyopia, that is, underdevelopment in the brain of the areas that are responsible for the eye with low vision. As a result, the brain learns to ignore the image from a weak eye. Age is critical precisely because the development of these brain regions is limited to seven years. Correction of strabismus over the age of 7 years will not solve the problem of amblyopia, therefore, if strabismus occurs in a small child, it is necessary to begin treatment as soon as possible. Otherwise, vision will remain very low, although strabismus will not be present. Treatment can be either conservative or surgical.
The most familiar way for everyone is wearing glasses. If there is a slight strabismus, treatment can be so simple. The patient is offered to wear special bifocal glasses, that is, glasses with bifocal lenses. Or special lenses called prisms. At the same time with glasses you need to use special drops.
An eye patch is the main treatment for amblyopia, which is sometimes the cause of strabismus and sometimes the result. So how to cure strabismus with a bandage? This method will only work if this condition was triggered by amblyopia. The strong eye is closed with a blindfold so that the weak one works, so the brain has to work with the image from the weak one, which usually “walks” with strabismus. Thus, the eye develops and develops the corresponding center of the brain, and strabismus is overcome over time. The main thing is not to force the child to wear the bandage longer than your doctor recommends, otherwise amblyopia of a healthy eye may occur.
Are medications effective for a diagnosis of strabismus? Treatment may include atropine or substances, on the contrary, constricting the pupil (myotics). They affect the muscles of the eye that work with the pupil. Miotics help if strabismus is caused by the inability to focus the eye. Atropine is often used instead of a bandage, as a result the vision of a strong eye is temporarily impaired, and the child has to use a weak eye. This method is better than wearing a bandage, because in this case the child cannot remove the bandage, that is, stop the action of atropine, and this action lasts a fixed time.
Eye exercises are used as an additional tool. However, they themselves are not able to cure strabismus, so do not believe advertising on the Internet and do not pay money for fiction. Exercise works only in combination with serious methods. And do not fool yourself. The worst thing if a child is sick is to lose time that could be used for effective treatment.
Botulinum toxin is used not only in aesthetic medicine. It is also used in order to weaken the muscles of a certain side, which provoke strabismus. This method is usually used together with surgical ones, but it causes too many disputes and the results are usually unpredictable.
How to remove strabismus surgically, what is the principle? The doctor changes the length of the small muscles of the eye or changes their position, as a result the eyes begin to move simultaneously. Often after surgery, the child needs to wear glasses and perform exercises for some time. It happens that strabismus is corrected for children under 2 years of age, but it is not recommended to do this before 6 months, because sometimes it disappears by this age itself, and any intervention is undesirable.
For adults, a surgical solution to the problem is the only truly effective way to remove strabismus. Treatment helps them eliminate double vision, expand their field of vision, increase their self-esteem, and enable them to feel more confident in communication.