Recently, various ophthalmic problems have become widespread in children. One of them is astigmatism. What is it really? In fact, it cannot be called a disease, it is rather a refractive defect of the lens (cornea), which has an irregular shape. Because of this, the light rays are not focused, which means that the image is fuzzy. During the formation of the child's body, the disease can manifest itself at any stage. There is both astigmatism in both eyes, and one.
A properly shaped cornea is spherical, allowing light rays to focus clearly and transmit an excellent image to the retina. When the cornea is shaped like a melon, the light rays are refracted differently, which creates an incorrect vision of surrounding objects.
Diagnosis astigmatism. How does the disease manifest?
The most common genetic astigmatism. Eye trauma or surgery can cause its acquired form. Parents can independently pay attention to the fact that the child's eyesight has fallen: he leans towards the object to examine it,often squints. A small person may have irritability and increased fatigue against this background.
How to treat?
It is better not to treat, but to correct astigmatism. What is "correct"? It all depends on the existing complications. Low astigmatism (up to 0.5 D) without myopia and hypermetropia is usually not corrected. If the degree of astigmatism is higher, it is recommended to use glasses with special lenses.
The essence of the treatment is that the doctor, on the basis of the examination, selects a cylindrical component with the correct position along the axis. This will change the refraction of the rays, and the child will see clearly.
The surgical method of correction is possible only after the final formation of the body, that is, not earlier than the person turns 20.
With astigmatism from birth, the child usually does not even realize that he sees wrong. He has nothing to compare his feelings to. He, most likely, does not even suspect about such a disease as astigmatism. What it is and how it is treated, sometimes the parents themselves do not know. But a qualified specialist will definitely determine the disease and suggest ways to solve the problem.
If you approach the issue of astigmatism correction reasonably, then over time it will be possible to forget about glasses. True, with a high degree, laser correction of a corneal defect cannot be dispensed with.
It is very important to start treatment on time. Since with a decrease in visual acuity, amblyopia can develop, usually accompanying astigmatism. What it is? This is a lazy eye syndrome, more precisely, a decrease in the functioning of the cells of the cerebral cortex. At school lessons, the baby may face serious problems.
In home treatment it is possible to use special devices and programs. The so-called medical glasses with holes are not a panacea for restoring visual acuity. Of course, they increase the depth of optical focus. But their beneficial effect on astigmatism has not been scientifically proven.
Preparations containing blueberries, various dietary supplements, are multivitamin complexes, not medicines. Ophthalmologists prescribe vitamin therapy traditionally, you should not count on its miraculous effect.
Due to their age, children do not realize that they have some kind of vision problem. Therefore, you should visit the doctor regularly, even if there are no complaints. This will allow you to exclude or start treating the disease in time.
