Treating Pink Eye

By Health.Tips.Net

I bet you can remember countless times during your childhood when you woke up on a school day only to find out the minute you tried to force your eyes open they just would not budge. Yelling for your mom, that is when the 'uh, oh' moment occurred as she declared, 'you are staying home from school because you have pink eye.' Oh, I remember those days. It was bad enough having to stay home with a bad head cold or even the flu, but pink eye was unpleasant dealing with the constantly tearing eyes, and not to mention the white, gooey discharge that caused my eyes to crust close overnight.

The proper medical term for pink eye is conjunctivitis, which develops when the thin membrane located inside your eyelid and over the eyeball becomes inflamed by a bacterial or viral infection. The common redness associated with pink eye is caused by the inflammation, which causes the small blood vessels in the eye to become enlarged, making the eye look really red or bloodshot. There are actually four common causes of pink eye, including: viruses and bacteria, allergies, debris or foreign object in the eye, or some type of chemical liquid entering the eye. Newborns can also develop ink eye, but it is often attributed to an underdeveloped or blocked tear duct. Symptoms you can look for that may indicate the onset of pink eye, include:

•A mucous-type discharge in one or both eyes

•Eyes crusted shut overnight

•Redness in one or both eyes

•Constant tearing of the affected eye

•The sensation debris or other irritant is caught in the eye
As mentioned above, pink eye is highly contagious, and that is why schools and many workplaces enforce their rules that when it comes to infected individuals they are to remain home until all symptoms have cleared up. Depending on the type of conjunctivitis may be present; the recovery time may be as short as 24 hours to three days, or as lengthy as 7 to 14 days. Doctors can easily determine if pink eye is the culprit of a red, runny eye by taking a sample of the discharge and submitting it for analysis. Once the results are confirmed, then your doctor can properly provide treatment. Treatments will typically include the following:

•Allergy-related Conjunctivitis. Usually, a type of eye drops will be prescribed. This can vary, depending on the basis of the allergy, and may be: decongestants, anti-histamines, or anti-inflammatory and steroidal drops for the more severe allergic reactions. This type should be gone in a few days time.

•Bacterial Conjunctivitis. This is often the most commonly diagnosed form of Pink Eye. Doctors will generally prescribe antibiotic eye drops or ointment to apply to the affected eye. The ointment is frequently recommended for children because it is easier to apply. After application, the eye will be a bit blurry for a while, but this will clear as the medication is absorbed. Using the prescription, the condition will probably be gone within 7 days.

•Viral Conjunctivitis. Oh, what a nuisance this type can be because like any virus, it must run its course. Your doctor may prescribe eye drops or ointment to help with inflammation or the uncomfortable symptoms, but either will do little to speed up the process. The virus has to work its way out of your system. Unfortunately, this can take as long as 2-3 weeks, so you will have to exercise patience.
In addition, if you are a contact lens wearer, you should be certain to use and cleanse your cleanse as you have been instructed by your optometrist. Contact lens wearers can become susceptible to conjunctivitis because there is always a perceived foreign object in contact with your eye.

http://health.tips.net/Pages/T006370_Treating_Pink_Eye.html

Advancements in Cataract Surgery

By Health Tips & Technics

Cataract is one of the most commonly occuring vision defect in older population. The treatment is mainly surgical. The recent advancements in surgical procedures has made it more acceptable. The advanced procedures are painless,bloodless.

Cataract, meaning opacification of the human lens is best treated using ultrasound. By this method the lens is emulified and sucked out using vacuum. When the surgery is performed through the cornea there is no loss of blood. This is extremely useful for hypertensive and cardiac patients taking medications that affect clotting of blood. Since the surgery is peformed through a micro incision and sutures are generally not required. Usually the procedure is performed under local anesthesia making it an absolutely Pain less and safe procedure. This does not require hospitalisation.

Recently the new advancement in cataract surgery has occured known as 'Micro Pulse Phaco' or 'Cold Phaco'. We saw earlier that the procedure of Phacoemulsification is like a combination of hand held mixer vaccum machine. When we use a mixer for grinding a hard substance and when it is used for a long time it gets heated up. The same thing happens in Cataract surgery too. This heat can cause harm to the cornea of the eye, that may affect the visual outcome after surgery. The newly used Phaco machines do not produce heat during surgery. This technology is called 'Cold Phaco'. Following this extraction an intraocular lens is implanted into the eye in place of a defective lens.

In Short

Surgery is the only cure for Cataract.

It is Painless and suture less.

It can occur at any age more than 50 years.

Good Quality intraocular lens has to be chosen.

http://www.healthtips.in/demo.asp

10 Tips and Technics for Better Eyes

By Health Tips & Technics

Most computer users suffer from the problem of tired eyes, dark circles and headaches. Follow the ten tips to avoid them

Studies have shown that stress, active nightlife and above all, the fact that most of us spend maximum time in front of the computer lead to dark circles, puffed and tired eyes. Timely treatment is essential for such difficulties.

Specifically with computer users, physical and visual discomfort is experienced by many after just a few hours in front of computers. It appears that PC users suffer from repetitive stress of their eyes and want an immediate solution to revive the tired eyes.

Studies show that most computer users start to feel eye-muscle stress after two or more hours at the computer. This usually starts with tired eyes. With more time at the computer, discomfort frequently spreads to the head resulting in headaches, burning of the eyes, blurred vision, loss of focus, double vision, and neck and shoulder pains. Before it is too late, your stressed out eyes need to be relaxed and revitalised so that you feel fresh later in the day.



Tips to reduce eyestrain


-Modify your workstation. Adjust your workstation and chair to the correct height.
Use proper lighting.

-Match the computer screen to the brightness of the environment. The contrast between the background and on-screen characters should be high.

-Minimise the glare. Use window shades, blinds or drapes to block excessive sunlight or install an anti-glare screen to minimise reflections.

-Take frequent breaks. Full-time computer users should take a 10 minute break every hour.

-Blink more often. Tears in the eye evaporate more rapidly during long non-blinking phases and cause dry eyes.

-Get an eye examination done.

-Re-focus your eyes. Look away from your computer screen every 10-15 minutes and focus for 5-10 seconds on a distant object.

-Exercise even when sitting. Move about or exercise frequently.

-Get sufficient sleep. Fatigue promotes eyestrain.

http://www.healthtips.in/treatment-eyes-tips-technics.asp

Eye care- Tips to rejuvenate your eyes

By Health Tips & Technics

Be it pollution, stress or examination tension, you have enough reason to be worried about your appearance. After all you don't want to be called 'Queen of dark circles' or Princess puffy eyes'. Fortunately, there are simple remedies to treat your eyes. You don't need to visit a cosmotologist or even a saloon. You can sit at home relax in your easy chair and take care of your eyes.

"The common adice given is to cool and relax one's eyes with slices of cucumber placed over eyelids". A few drops of coconut oil massaged around the eyes helps get rid of dark spots.

When one does not have time for face packs, using an under eye concealer is the best option. A solution of Glycerine and lemon juice applied around the eyes removes dark circles. Also, cotton pads soaked in cold milk and placed around the eyes cools the eyes.


A mixture of safforn and honey applied around the eyes can do good. It is believed washing ones face every night with rosewater refreshes the eye. In order to remove puffiness from the eyelids and also for long eyelashes a thin coat of castor oil can be applied before going to bed. Baggy or puffy eyes can be treated by keeping ice cubes on them.

Most people tend to dose off while reading. However, those who wear contact lenses must ensure that they take them off before sleeping as this could lead to puffy eyes.

Eat Healthy: Green leafy vegetables are a must. Carrot is good for eyes. Ensure that your diet is rich in Vitamins A, B and C.

Drink plenty of water : Your system needs purification.

Use user friendly make up: Make sure you remove your makeup before your retire to bed.

Finally sleep : It is important to get eight hours of sleep. You will feel revitalised and this will reflect in your eyes.

Courtesy: The Hindu, supplementary 27th March 2009

http://healthtips.in/eyes-treatment-refresh.asp

Tips to protect your eyes from computer

By Wisdenwriters on December 2, 2009 OnlineHealthTips.net

Eyes is one of the most delicate and sensitive organs of our body. Without eyes life will be helpless and hopeless and one will end up saying “Every closed eye is not sleeping, and every open eye is not seeing.” The technology today is so vast that one can not think his life without computers, laptops, electronic gadgets etc. All these gives lots of stress to our eyes as one have to work for hours to complete one’s work. Today the young generation is so advanced that even if you want to buy something they search on the internet for the product.

The music mania in young generation is speeding with time and they all do it from internet. So it’s obvious that all this can only be done when one has a computer at home and is spending time on it, loads of time but the thing one does not bother is to watch out for their eyes. Protection of eyes is necessary, now you may think that everybody knows about it but one thing no one realizes is that not taking appropriate care of your eyes can lead you to severe eye diseases as said by the recent medical studies, not only leading to poor vision but also causing problems like cataract. So here we present you with some tips to take precautions while you are using your computers.

The foremost thing you should do is that to buy an external screen which does not allow you to have a direct contact with the computer screen. This helps your eyes to be less stressful. The other thing you can do is to buy new technology plasma screens i.e. pc suite and you will get them in reasonable rates. If you can not pursue the above said then the other thing you can do is to keep maximum distance from the computer screen. The technology is so advance that you can set an eye range in your computer screen which lets you know and sends you an alarm when you are coming too close to the computer screen. The other thing you can do is that when you are finished doing your computer work, wash your eyes thoroughly and keep your eyes closed for sometime. This helps your eye muscles to relax. The best way is to spend minimum hours on computer but if you can’t then you should take the above said precautions for your own good.

http://onlinehealthtips.net/tips-to-protect-your-eyes-from-computer.html

5 Secrets to Preserve Your Eyesight

By Dr. Maoshing Ni

More than ever we are using our eyes to stare at small type and images on computer screens, televisions, and cellphones—a modern trend that leads to eye fatigue and an increase in age-related eye problems. But diminished eyesight does not have to be an inevitable part of living long. Use these 5 secrets to promote and preserve the health of your eyes.

1. A juice to brighten your eyesight
An age-old Chinese folk remedy for clearing the vision is a blended juice made from celery, peppermint, and Chinese parsley. Research has caught up with this wisdom, and we now know that luteolin, an antioxidant bioflavonoid found in these three ingredients, has been found to provide the best protection of cell DNA from radiation. Some evidence shows that luteolin helps protect the eye from UV radiation damage, as well as from glycation, a process in which sticky sugar molecules bind up protein, potentially damaging the retina. Luteolin also promotes healthy blood sugar levels and regulates insulin sensitivity. Blend together celery, peppermint, and Chinese parsley in a blender with a little water or a juicer. Drink this fresh juice daily to see well into the future!

2. Eat for eye health
Let nature help you maintain vision health with its bounty of beneficial foods for eyesight. Spinach is full of lutein and zeaxanthin, antioxidants that protect your retina from the macular degeneration that comes with age. Don't forget: fat increases lutein absorption, so remember to sauté your spinach in a little olive oil. (More leafy greens for a long life.) Other lutein and zeaxanthin vegetables include spinach, kale, turnip greens, collards, mustard greens, squash, green peas, broccoli, pumpkin, and corn. Chlorophyll-rich algae like spirulina, chlorella, and blue-green algae possess nutrients that are beneficial for the eyes. Carrots, loaded with vitamin A and beta-carotene, are also a great help to your eyes. Bilberry, a cousin of blueberry, boosts blood flow to eye nerves and is also rich in antioxidants. Goji berry is used to strengthen the eyesight, so snack on them in between meals.

3. Stay hydrated
Proper hydration is essential for good eye function. So drink filtered water regularly to stay hydrated. A slow and regular intake of water creates a constant supply of water to lubricate and nourish our eyes. Drink 8 glasses of water every day.

4. Eye exercises to fight floaters
These simple exercises improve and maintain good vision and may also get rid of those pesky floaters in your eyes.

■Rub your palms together to create heat, and then place them against your eyes for five seconds. Repeat this three times.
■Roll your eyes in circles, starting at the top and slowly circling 10 times clockwise and 10 times counterclockwise.
■Hold a pen at arm's length, focus your eyes on it, and slowly bring the pen closer until it's about six inches away from your nose. Then slowly move it back, keeping your eyes focused on the pen, 10 times in all.
■Using your thumb knuckles, massage your temples in small circles, 20 times in one direction and 20 in the other. Repeat the same actions above the mid-point of the eyebrows at the forehead, then below the eyes on both sides of the bridge of the nose.
■Take a nap on the job! Put your head back, close your eyes, and relax for three minutes.
After a month you will notice an improvement in vision and a decrease in floaters. Try to do these exercises first thing in the morning, just before bed, or whenever your eyes feel tired, like after computer use. Make sure your hands are clean and that you are relaxed. The key to progress is daily practice, so make it a habit! Additionally, take care of your eyes by wearing UV-protective sunglasses.

5. Instant eye remedies
Try these dietary and herbal remedies for overall eye health:

■To nourish your eyes, follow Popeye's lead. Boil 4 ounces of fresh spinach in 4 cups of water. Drink this spinach tea daily to give vital nourishment to your eyes.
■Grape seed extract (OPC) and bilberry extracts contain potent antioxidants for eye health.
■Taking ginkgo on a daily basis has been shown to improve circulation to the eyes. Find it in a health food store.
■When your eyes feel tired, lie down and place slices of cucumber on your eyelids to soothe the eyes and restore moisture.
■As a general rule of thumb, eye exams should be done once every 2 to 4 years for everyone under age 40 and once every 2 years after. This way, you can detect issues before they become severe.
You can find these eye health secrets and many others in my newest book Second Spring.

I hope these help you maintain good vision well into your golden years! I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.

May you live long, live strong, and live happy!

--Dr. Mao

Types of Eye Disease

By LiveScience Staff posted: 15 January, 2006 6 am ET

Nature has many ways of making it hard for people to see. Here are eye disease prevalence numbers in adults 40 years and older in the United States, based on data from 2000:
Cataract (20.5 million)—a clouding of the eye’s usually clear lens and is the leading cause of blindness in the world.
Age-related macular degeneration (1.8 million)— a disease that damages the eye’s macula, located in the center of the retina, causing a loss of sharp, central vision needed for tasks like reading and driving.
Glaucoma (2.2 million)—a disease that gradually damages the optic nerve that carries visual signals from the eye to the brain. As much as half of all people with glaucoma are unaware they have it because only after a significant amount of nerve damage does a person loses vision.
Retinal diseases (diabetic retinopathy and retinitis pigmentosa)—a group of hereditary disorders in which the rod and cone cells in the retina deteriorate causing impaired or loss of vision.
• Diabetic retinopathy (4.1 million)
• Retinitis pigmentosa (50,000 to 100,000)
Source: National Eye Institute/NIH

Cataract
It is the clouding of the normally transparent lens in the eye. It lowers the degree of transparency and thus the objects seen will become blur.
Cataract is a common cause of poor vision. It usually develops gradually when people get older, but this can also happen to youngsters or be present at birth. In the early stages of the cataractous process, it is a normal part of aging and is not considered as a disease at all. As we age, chemical changes occur in the human lens that render it less transparent. For mild cases, it hardly affects vision, but for severe cases, only light and dark can be seen. Without effective treatments, cataracts account for as much as 50% of the world's mass blindness and it is one of the world's leading causes of blindness.
Common symptoms:
• diminished vision
• double vision
• newly acquired ability to read without glasses
• frequent changes in eyeglass prescription (for serious cases)
• poor vision in bright light and improved vision in dim light
• decrease in sensitivity to color
Causes:
• Aging
• Long duration of diabetes
• Injury to lens
• Congenital
• Glass blowers
• Other eye diseases
• Dehydration
• Low levels of calcium
• Continuous doses of cortisone for prolonged periods
• Cigarette smoking
• Treatment:
by surgery -- the operation involves the removal of the clouded lens from the eye and the implant of an artificial lens. There are 3 types of surgery: 1) posterior chamber implants 2) anterior chamber implants 3) iris-supported implants. These operations may leave an optical error that can be corrected by eyeglasses, contact lenses, or by implanting an intraocular lens. In Hong Kong, the rate of success in this operation is 95%. The complications of it includes internal bleeding of the eye, glaucoma, retinal detachment.

Glaucoma
It is an ailment that includes any eye diseases which cause an increase in pressure in the eye. The eye is filled with a clear fluid -- humor -- which helps maintain the eye's shape and nourishes the lens and cornea. The ciliary body continuously secretes new humor and the excess is drained through the front of the eye. In glaucoma, the fluid does not drain away properly, the pressure inside the eye accumulates, pinching the blood vessels to the optic nerve. As the nutrients cannot be transported the nerve cells via the blood vessels, the nerve cells slowly die, causing progressive loss of vision which can lead to total blindness. This results in visual loss by damaging the optic nerve and retina. Unfortunately, glaucoma is usually detected when the patient has already suffered vision loss and this visual loss is irreversible, no medical treatment or surgical operation can restore the vision.

Types of glaucoma
The four different types of glaucoma
1) Primary open angle glaucoma ( Chronic simple glaucoma )
This is the most common form of glaucoma and it's believed to be inherited and is almost always bilateral. At the early stage, most of the glaucoma patient do not have any symptoms and it is very difficult to be detected. It is usually be detected through regular eye examinations. At the later stage, the optic nerve has already been destroyed, the patient's vision will become narrower and narrower. Finally, objects beyond the central vision can not be seen, as if looking through a cylinder, with diminishing vision, the patient will finally become blind.
With advancing age, open angle glaucoma is not a disease. With age, the trabecular meshwork becomes less able to drain aqueous from the anterior chamber. As a result, the intraocular pressure increases. When the patient has lost all vision from glaucoma, the patient is suffering from Absolute Glaucoma which is often painful.
2) Primary angle closure glaucoma ( Congestive glaucoma )
Angle closure glaucoma is a common blinding disease in adults which is suspected when the ocular media is clear and peripheral or central vision is reduced. An acute and painful glaucoma, primary angle closure glaucoma results when normal iris suddenly blocks the trabecular meshwork and thereby outflow of aqueous. This may occur in an eye with an abnormally shallow anterior chamber. Primary closure glaucoma is usually a bilateral disease. However, bilateral simultaneous acute attacks of acute angle closure glaucoma are rare.
3) Secondary glaucoma
Secondary glaucoma includes a variety of glaucomas which result from previous eye disease or trauma. This type of glaucoma may develop from uveitis, cataract, hyphema, complications from intraocular surgery, or long-term use of corticoid.
4) Infantile glaucoma
Infantile glaucoma is an inborn disability, this is caused by the blockage by abnormal tissue, resulting in inability in draining the aqueous from the anterior chamber. The symptoms include abnormally large eyes, unclear cornea and most of the infected babies have too much tear and are afraid of light. Although rare, infantile glaucoma is a worldwide problem. It requires early surgical treatment to prevent total blindness.
Common symptoms:
• lost or blurry side vision
• eye pain
• episodes of seeing floaters, spots or flashes of light
• frequent changes in eyeglass strength
• severe pain in the eye
• headache nausea
• partial loss of vision

Retinal Detachment
Retinal detachment occurs when the retina becomes separated from the back of the eye as a result of the spreading of a small tear. This can happen slowly over a period of weeks, or very suddenly, within only a few hours. Without appropriate treatments, patients may suffer from total blindness. Some eye injuries may cause retinal detachment. With age, the vitreous body will solidify and contract, and detach from the retina. If the detachment is sudden and vigorous, it will cause a tear in the retina, resulting in retinal detachment.
Small tears in the retina can be detected with the routine eye exams and treated with laser surgery to prevent further spreading. A detached retina can be reattached, but vision may be impaired or lost. Immediate treatment is crucial.
Retinal detachment can be classified into 2 types : primary and secondary, depending on the causes.
Symptoms:
• diminishing vision
• floating spots or specks and flashes of light
• disappearance of segments of the visual field
Causes:
• aging
• inherited
• myopia
• complications of eye surgery
• eye injuries
• can occur without any apparent cause or reason
Treatment: Surgical repair should be performed as soon as possible. Retinal detachment is considered a surgical emergency.

Uveitis
This is the inflammation of a part, or all of the uvea, or uvela tract. The uvea includes the choroid, ciliary body and iris of the eye. It occurs when microfilariae penetrate the sclera and enter the eyeball, and it is classified according to the anatomic location of the inflammation in the uveal tract. Nutrients that the eyeball need are transported by the vast vessel network in the uvea, that's why when the uvea is infected, other parts of the eye will also be affected. As the uvea covers the whole eyeball, uveitis is usually more severe than the other eye diseases.
Symptoms:
• light sensitive
• blurry vision
• severe pain in the eye
• severe redness of the eye
• diminishing vision
Causes:
• ocular contusion injury
• lens-induced uveitis
• arthritis
• it may occur with tuberculosis, leprosy, and lues
Treatment: Uveitis is usually managed with cycloplegics ( atropine ) and anti-inflammatory drugs ( corticosteroids ), either topical or subconjunctival, and frequent re-examination. Apart from medicine, the doctor may use laser or surgery.

Diabetic retinopathy / Diabetes mellitus
It is caused by diabetes, a group of disease in which the body is unable to regulate the amount of sugar ( glucose ) in the blood. Diabetes can affect the other organs and also the eye. The most serious eye problem associated with diabetes is retinopathy. This happens when the tiny blood vessels in the retina weaken or swell, causing blood leakage, new vessel formation and other changes that damage the nerve cells which transmit images to the brain. In the early stage, traces of blood and fat deposit will appear on the retina, but the patient's vision will be normal.
Diabetic retinopathy is a serious complication that often leads to visual impairment and is frequently complicated by cataract formation. In Hong Kong, the prevalence rate is estimated to be 8-10% of the population, it occurs in approximately 15%-30% of diabetic patients of less than 5 years history and 25%-50% of 5-15 years history. Microvascular damage from diabetes leads to micro-aneurysms, haemorrhage, exudates, and cotton-wool spots. Further progression if disease results in new vessel growth, or neovascularization which can cause haemorrage, scarring, and permanent visual loss. In the early stages, retinopathy can be treated by using laser therapy to seal leaking blood vessels.

Dry Eye
Tears, not only does it reflect one's emotion, it has its actual uses. Under normal conditions, the tear glands produce enough tears to moisturize the cornea and to avoid the evaporation of the eye surface. If the tear production is reduced, it will result in hot, dry, burning eyes.
Wet eye would seem to be the opposite of the dry eye, but in reality it is a reaction to the dry eye. When the eye is dry, it is stimulated and produce a lot of tears, therefore, wet eye may be a signal of dry eye.
The thin film of tears is critically important for maintaining the function and health of the cornea. Since the cornea doesn't have a direct blood supply, the surface cells must maintain metabolism by getting oxygen and nutrients, then getting rid of waste products by way of the tear supply.
The tear firm is made up of three layers:
1. The outer layer -- the lipid layer which acts as a lubricant so that the tear film is adhered to the eye and it prevents the aqueous layer from evaporating too rapidly.
2. The middle layer -- the watery, aqueous layer which supplies oxygen to the cornea.
3. The inner layer -- the mucin layer which controls the amount of water in contact with the cornea.
Tear gland function decreases with age. This produces a progressive drying of the conjunctiva with aging. For some of the patients, they may also have symptoms such as rheumatoid arthritis and dry mouth. These symptoms are called Sjogren's Syndrome. The dry eye may be treated with isotonic artificial tears. Closure of the lacimal puncti with thermal cautery can prevent drainage of tears and the increased tear film will moisten the ocular surfaces, improving dry eye symptoms.

Strabismus / Squint
Strabismus refers to the condition of the eyes being misaligned so that only one eye at a time fixes on the visual target. If left untreated, it will produce monocular visual disability or blindness.
Strabismus, the official term, can assume many forms:
1) Exotropia ('wall eyes') refers to outward deviation
2) Esotropia ('crossed eyes') refers to inward deviation
3) Hypertropia refers to upward deviation of one eye
4) Hypotropia refers to downward deviation of one eye
and even combinations such as out with down etc.
In all cases of strabismus, one eye does the sighting while the other eye looks somewhere else. In a few people the sighting eye and turning eye will alternate roles each periodically doing the sighting. A common misconception is that strabismus is caused by weak muscles. While on rare occasions a paralyzed or misconnected muscle is the culprit, the muscles attached to the eyeball are very strong and the range of movements quite remarkable. The real problem is that the two eyes just won't work jointly as the brain's passion to avoid double vision.
Another common type of strabismus is caused by high amounts of farsightedness. This is the classic case of one eye turning inward toward the nose. To see clearly, the farsighted eyes must use an exceptional amount of focusing power. But, since focusing and turning the eyes inward work together, double vision ensues. To get out of this quandary, the brain learned that by turning one eye inward a bit more, the image falls on the normal blind spot. Thus, only one image is seen. Other types of crossed eyes have other causes, yet are not know.
Some of the patients may have inherited strabismus. It occurs early in childhood without any apparent cause and is called Primary Strabismus. Another type of strabismus that follow trauma directly to one or both eyes is called Secondary Strabismus.
Secondary strabismus may be due to a cranial nerve palsy from:
• head injury
• intracranial mass ( brain tumor or abscess)
• vascular accident (stroke)
• diabetes mellitus
• vascular disease
• systemic hypertension
• heart disease
Strabismus cannot be treated solely by medication. The actual treatment procedures can be quite involved, but the following steps are taken:
1) Glasses are prescribed. If necessary, a prism effect is incorporated into the lenses to shift the images closer together
2) Vision therapy (orthoptics) is used to break up the suppression habit. Once there is an awareness of double vision when the eyes are not straight, the patient is trained to fuse the two images into one. As this progresses, the eyes will slowly assume a straight posture for longer periods of time.
3) Stereopsis is developed and the new vision pattern reinforced to keep the eyes from recrossing.
By ThinkQuest.org