Flour Baby

Your Baby Wears Glasses?

Around the time that Addie reached twelve months, she received visits from an Occupational Therapist twice a month. Valerie noticed that Addie had a tendency to tilt her head while she was playing—a new mannerism that we had brushed off as “cute.” Valerie suggested that we monitor the tilt and mention it to our pediatrician at Addie’s one-year check-up.

At the appointment, Dr. P immediately ruled out torticollis, but suggested that we do some general neck stretches with Addie to help loosen up her muscles. He also referred us to the InfantSEE program for a vision check*. Since InfantSEE is for children less than 1 year of age, we went ahead and scheduled an appointment with Addie’s regular ophthalmologist.

Sure enough, the exam revealed that Addie needed glasses. One of her eyes is near-sighted and the other is far-sighted.

At this point, we’re not sure if that’s caused by her prematurity or just a coincidence. What surprised us most is that Addie’s eyes changed so significantly in 6 months! At her regular exam that January, she had no need for glasses, but by June her eyesight was already affecting her development!

At the beginning, it was not always easy to help her keep her glasses on. She was only one, and it was difficult to explain why she needed to wear them. Once she realized that she could see better with them on, she was much more agreeable! We also bought a rubber strap that made it more difficult for her to pull them off—fortunately, she only needed it for a month or so. www.preemiebabies101.com › Uncategorized

What is Nystagmus?

Nystagmus is eye movement that occurs in infancy causing reduced or limited vision. Nystagmus can be caused by quick eye movement or disorientation, something your congesting, or just spontaneous eye movements.

Pathologic nystagmus

A pathologic nystagmus is going from the healthy or normal condition to something serious.

“Pathological nystagmus is the result of damage to one or more components of the vestibular system, including the semicircular canals, otolith organs, and the vestibulocerebellum.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nystagmus

Pathologic Nystagmus is not always noticeable so parents need to look out for that.

Early-onset nystagmus

Early-onset nystagmus occurs more frequently than pathological nystagmus. It can cause other disorders (such as micro-ophthalmic anomalies or Down Syndrome). Early-onset nystagmus itself is usually mild and non-progressive.

“The affected persons are not normally aware of their spontaneous eye movements, but vision can be impaired depending on the severity of the movements."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nystagmus

Spontaneous nystagmus in infants

Spontaneous nystagmus in infants is rarely present at the time of birth. It usually appears some time during the first six months. Nystagmus occurring within the first month of life can be divided into 3 types:

1. Sensory Defect Nystagmus – In these patients there is an abnormality of vision.

2. Congenital Idiopathic Nystagmus or Motor Nystagmus – These patients have no visual or neurological impairment on clinical examination.

3. Neurological Nystagmus – Where abnormal neurological signs are present indicating cerebral dysfunction.

“Infants and children presenting with nystagmus require a full history and clinical examination including family history. Added electro-physiological investigation and eye movement recordings may assist in the delineation of the form of nystagmus which is present.” www.eyedr4kids.com/

Finding a Doctor

Dealing with Nystagmus in an infant can mean spending a lot of time with doctors. Finding the right doctor can be difficult and costly. You may even be visiting 2 or 3 doctors at a time so its important to find ones that know what they are doing.

“You will be taking your child to their eye doctor a lot in the next few years. You’ll probably be there at least every 6 months and quite possibly more often than that. Because of this, it is vital to find a doctor that you trust and who works well with your child. While many of us are very happy with the first doctor we visit, many have gone to 2, 3 or even 4 doctors to find one who will work for them.” littlefoureyes.com › babies with glasses

Keeping Them on

It can be difficult to get an infant to wear glasses. Getting them to stay on can be a challenge. I have seen rubber straps or extra curled ear pieces as part of the glasses to keep them on, but here are other ways.

“While there are a lot of strategies to get your child to leave their glasses on, the key seems to be to stay calm and positive (which is easier said than done) and consistent about keeping them on (ok, this is also easier said than done). When your child takes them off, put them back on with a smile, but don’t make a big deal about it. If they are really fighting or upset, set the glasses to the side for a few minutes until your child calms down and try again. You’ll also want to have activities on hand when you put those glasses on. Boredom and glasses do not mix!” littlefoureyes.com › babies with glasses

Signs of problems

Even though visits with the pediatrician are valuable, as a parent, you know your child best and are therefore able to detect signs of vision problems at home. According to Dr Morse, signs to look for include:

Squinting
Crossing the eyes
Excessive tearing
An abnormal red reflex in photos of the child

If your child exhibits any of these symptoms, make an appointment with a pediatric ophthalmologist. "However, not all vision problems show signs," cautions Dr Morse, "which is why vision screening within the medical home of the primary care provider is the best way to detect early vision problems." www.sheknows.com/.../How-can-you-tell-if-your-child-needs-glasses

Judgment

It is difficult to know your child has to wear glasses and judgment can be an issue. Every mom wants a healthy child, so it can be embarrassing for a mother to have to put glasses on their infant. “There has also been some research that found that most school-age kids don’t believe that glasses make other kids less attractive or less athletic, only that they’re likely to think kids with glasses are more honest (read the post about that study). Of course this doesn’t mean your child will immune from being teased about their glasses, but it sounds as though the unattractive, unathletic, nerd stereotype is perhaps fading.” www.sheknows.com/.../How-can-you-tell-if-your-child-needs-glasses