A Misalignment of the Eyes
Strabismus (commonly known as "crossed eyes" or a "wandering eye") occurs when a child's eyes do not properly align with each other. While one eye looks straight ahead at the target, the other eye turns in a different direction.
Turning In (Esotropia)
One eye turns inward toward the nose. This is highly common in young children and is frequently caused by high amounts of uncorrected farsightedness.
Turning Out (Exotropia)
One eye turns outward toward the ear. This often happens when the child is daydreaming, tired, or looking at something far away.
The Hidden Deficit
The Loss of 3D Vision & Depth Perception
Many parents assume an eye turn is purely a cosmetic issue. In reality, it causes a profound functional deficit: the destruction of depth perception (stereopsis).
To see the world in 3D, the brain must receive two perfectly aligned images—one from the right eye and one from the left. The brain fuses these two images together to calculate depth. If the eyes are misaligned, the brain cannot fuse the images.
Critical for Sports & Play
Without depth perception, a child struggles to judge how fast a ball is moving toward them or how far away a step is. They may appear "clumsy," struggle significantly with sports, have poor hand-eye coordination, or trip frequently.
The Double Vision Defense
If a child's eyes point in two different directions, they should technically see double. However, children's brains are highly adaptable. To avoid the severe confusion and nausea of double vision, the child's brain simply turns off or suppresses the image coming from the misaligned eye.
The Amblyopia Danger:
If the brain constantly ignores the turned eye, the neural pathways to that eye permanently shut down. This leads to Strabismic Amblyopia (Lazy Eye). The child will become permanently blind in that eye if it is not caught and treated before age 7 or 8.
Restoring Alignment
Treatment & Management
Dr. Fouladian works aggressively to straighten the eyes, restore 3D vision, and prevent permanent vision loss.
1. Prescription Eyeglasses
Many cases of inward-turning eyes (Accommodative Esotropia) are caused by the child over-focusing to compensate for severe farsightedness. Simply prescribing the correct pair of glasses relaxes the eye muscles and instantly straightens the eyes.
2. Patching & Prism
If Amblyopia has developed, we use an eye patch over the "good" eye to force the brain to use the turned eye. We may also prescribe Prism lenses to optically bend light and help the brain fuse the images together.
3. Surgical Co-Management
If the eye turn is strictly anatomical (a muscle that is too tight or too loose), glasses will not fix it. Dr. Fouladian will urgently refer your child to a specialized Pediatric Ophthalmologist for eye muscle surgery to physically align the eyes.
Do Not Wait To See if They "Grow Out of It"
A wandering or crossed eye rarely corrects itself. Early intervention is the only way to save their 3D vision and depth perception.
Schedule a Pediatric Exam
TEXT FOR APPT