Dra. Dora Fernández Agrafojo,

• When can I take my child to a doctor?

Any child who deviates intermittently one of the eyes can be attended to by a specialist at the age of six to seven months. Children struck by constant misalignment must be taken to a doctor immediately after they are born.

Strabismus is the main cause of amblyopia, also known as lazy eye, since the misaligned eye is not used and its visual accuracy thus deteriorates.

• How can it be corrected?

Strabismus in children can be corrected with either glasses, surgery or both options. Neither vitamins nor the course of time will put this visual defect right. The surgery is simple, but in children a general anaesthetic will be required. 

• What is the difference between epicanthus and strabismus?

Strabismus is not to be confused with epicanthus, an inborn feature in some children. In the case of an epicanthus, the shape of the eyelids -with a flap of skin sheathing the lachrymal zone- creates the impression that the gaze of the child is misaligned without it actually being so. Neither surgery nor treatment is necessary: it will fade away as the child grows older.