|
What is Strabismus? (Select Base In or Base Out for Pictures)
Strabismus is the medical term relating to a misalignment of the eyes. When strabismus occurs in an
adult for the first time, it leads to double vision, or diplopia .
Causes of Strabismus in an adult
The following are the most common causes of strabismus in adults:
1. Strabismus in an adult who had a history
of strabismus as a child. Many children are successfully treated for strabismus only to redevelop strabismus later in life. This may be secondary
to the inability of a person to use both eyes together (binocular vision) or other unknown causes.
2. Poor vision in one eye. People who have one eye that does not see well when fully corrected with glasses will often develop strabismus
with time. Most often, the poor seeing eyes drifts outward.
3. Vascular insults to a nerve that controls the movement of one or more eye muscles can lead to strabismus. This is most often seen in
older adults with a history of diabetes or high blood pressure.
Treatment of Strabismus in Adults
Treatment of strabismus in an adult depends on the cause of the strabismus. Small deviations that cause double vision can often be treated with
prism glasses. These glasses do not "cure" the problem. They "compensate" for it by allowing the eye to deviate and adjust the rays
of light that enter the eye to deviate in the correct direction in order to eliminate double vision. Only a relatively small strabismus can be
treated as prism glasses may distort vision and can be very thick.
Most strabismus caused by microvascular insults get better with time.
Therefore, the treatment for this form of strabismus is often time. Patching one eye, or the use of prism glasses, may eliminate the bothersome
double vision until time has allowed the problem to correct itself.
Patients with a history of strabismus, poor vision in one eye that has
lead to the development of strabismus and a large angle strabismus may be helped with strabismus surgery.
|
