Congenital myopia is the most serious form of myopia, usually diagnosed in newborns during the first year of life. Pathology occurs against the background of disorders in the development of the eyeball even during the period of intrauterine formation of the embryo. Doctors call genetic predisposition the main reason for the onset of the disease. It is very important to detect congenital myopia as early as possible and start appropriate treatment.
General information
Pathology occurs in a baby at the stage of intrauterine development, affecting the eyeball. After the birth of a child, the disease begins to progress rapidly. The defect is characterized by changes in the size and shape of the organ. With this disease, the eye is slightly retracted and has an oval shape.
According to doctors, congenital myopia (according to ICD-10 code H52.1) is directly related to genetic factors, since it is often transmitted to children from parents. If at least one of them has a diagnosis of myopia, then the chances that the disease will pass to the baby are extremely high.
In addition, congenital myopia of the eyes often occurs due topast diseases in the first trimester of gestation. Premature babies are also at risk. Children with a congenital form of pathology need increased attention from parents and doctors, since the disease can progress extremely rapidly.
What are the differences between the acquired and hereditary type of vice? The fact is that the first type of disease is formed throughout a person’s life, but the congenital type develops even in the prenatal period. This pathology is much more difficult to treat and, as a rule, progresses very quickly.
Varieties of disease
The degrees of congenital myopia in children are exactly the same as in the acquired form of the disease. According to the type of course, the pathology is progressive and non-progressive. Often a child is born already with a high degree of congenital myopia. This is another significant difference between a hereditary defect and an acquired form, which progresses rather slowly.
Taking into account the severity of the clinical picture of the disease, there are several degrees of myopia:
- weak type, in which no serious complications are observed, up to three diopters;
- medium variety, characterized by clouding of the lens and vitreous body, up to six diopters;
- high appearance, provoking the development of cataracts and even in some cases complete loss of vision, more than six diopters.
Congenital myopia is divided into several categories:
- refractive variety - the axis of the eye remainsnormal, but the cornea and lens are larger than expected;
- mixed type - both indicators are outside the norm;
- combined view - a non-standard combination of the sizes of the refractive sphere and the eyeball;
- axial class - the eyeball has an elongated shape, but the refractive indices are within the normal range.
Reasons for appearance
As already mentioned, the prerequisites for the development of congenital myopia in children lie in a genetic predisposition. If the baby has relatives with this defect in the family, then the likelihood of intrauterine myopia formation increases significantly. Medicine knows several factors that lead to the onset of the disease:
- heredity;
- hypoxia or prematurity;
- anomalies of the lens, eyeball or cornea;
- various damage;
- poor eye hygiene;
- increased intraocular pressure;
- malnutrition;
- all kinds of diseases of infectious pathogenesis;
- prolonged stay near the computer or TV.
Symptomatics
With the diagnosis of "myopia", the patient sees quite well near, but in the distance - badly, at an impressive distance, objects are very blurred, while there is no clarity at all. The presence of myopia is indicated by the presence of characteristic signs:
- the habit of wrinkling the forehead and squinting;
- lack of opportunityexamine objects in the distance;
- discomfort, pain in the eyes;
- blinking too much;
- desire to bring objects as close to you as possible;
- squint often occurs in six-month-old babies;
- rapid fatigue of the visual apparatus.
Parents need to watch their child's behavior very carefully at any age. This is especially important for those in whose family there are people diagnosed with myopia. If the baby blinks too often, rubs his eyes with his hands, suffers from migraines, you should immediately contact an ophthalmologist or pediatrician.
Congenital myopia can begin to develop rapidly literally at any moment. That is why treatment should be started as early as possible to get the best effect.
Diagnostic features
The main task of doctors is to detect congenital myopia in a baby as soon as possible. If the defect is not diagnosed in time, this can provoke the occurrence of more serious complications.
The ophthalmologist carefully examines the baby in the maternity ward, however, it is quite difficult to detect myopia in a newborn baby and it does not come out in all cases. In hospitals equipped with modern devices, there are great opportunities to detect pathology from the age of three months.
In case of late diagnosis of high-grade congenital myopia in children, anomalies may occur even in the first year of lifevisual apparatus, refractive amblyopia, strabismus - all these complications significantly impair vision and cannot be treated.
To make an accurate diagnosis, visual acuity is determined, as well as skiascopy, ophthalmoscopy and ultrasound examination of the eye. A fundus examination for confirmed myopia is carried out once a year.
General principles of treatment
Therapy for congenital myopia directly depends on the rate of progression of the pathology. If the child's vision falls insignificantly, up to 0.5 diopters, then the patient does not need special treatment. But be that as it may, young children with such a diagnosis should be constantly, systematically observed by a qualified ophthalmologist.
All therapeutic techniques are aimed primarily at ensuring that congenital myopia does not progress, and the vision of a small patient does not deteriorate. It is also very important to reduce the likelihood of concomitant malformations of the visual apparatus.
Optical correction
This is one of the main ways to treat mild to moderate congenital myopia. After detecting the disease, the ophthalmologist chooses the appropriate corrective lenses or glasses for the child. With a mild form of the disease, these remedies can be used only when the baby needs to look at objects in the distance, for example, while walking.
With a high degree of congenital myopia in children, the constant use of glasses is necessary. Lenses are recommended only at an older age, for example, inperiod of schooling, because they need to be constantly looked after, and small patients are not able to cope with this.
To prevent the rapid development of myopia, parents should pay due attention to the sick baby. Not all children like to wear glasses, so it is extremely important to monitor compliance with medical recommendations. After all, the use of optical correction can prevent the onset of amblyopia. And contact lenses make it possible to get rid of strabismus.
Drug therapy
In case of detecting a mild degree of myopia, as a rule, the child is prescribed vitamin complexes containing microelements useful for the eyes. Drugs containing lutein are considered very popular: for example, Okuvayt or Vitrum Vision. In case of a significant deterioration in vision and the development of high congenital myopia, nicotinic acid products, for example, Trental, are effective.
To normalize intraocular pressure, children are recommended all kinds of eye medications, Irifrin drops are often used. Medicines containing atropine help the ciliary muscles to relax and, in addition, eliminate spasm. To strengthen the eye blood vessels, ophthalmologists usually prescribe Papaverine and Askorutin. Medications significantly slow down the progression of the defect and eliminate disorders in the blood flow of the retina.
Physiotherapy treatments
Hardware treatment makes it possible to stabilize the accommodation of the eyes, prevent the occurrence of strabismus, astigmatism and other serious consequences. Used to improve vision:
- electrostimulation - helps to stop the development of myopia, in some cases returns the child to the subject orientation and improves vision;
- vacuum massage - improves blood flow, the functioning of ciliary muscles, increases the hydrodynamics of the visual apparatus;
- infrared laser therapy - enhances blood supply to the visual organs, eliminates spasm during accommodation.
Effective physiotherapy treatments also include massage of the collar zone, electrophoresis and acupuncture. However, all these courses can be prescribed exclusively by the attending physician. For the appearance of the first results, the child needs to undergo at least 10 sessions.
Gymnastic exercises
Physical education for the eyes is considered very useful for congenital myopia. Any child is able to master and perform exercises according to the Bates method every day. When conducting physical education, it is necessary to keep your back straight, while the head must remain motionless:
- alternately need to look left and right;
- then you should move your eyes counterclockwise and along it;
- the next step is to gently press the closed eyelids with your fingertips;
- and in conclusion -blink your eyes intensely.
With congenital myopia, the Bates method brings good results in the case of diagnosing a mild and moderate form of pathology.
Surgery
Surgery is deservedly considered an effective way to treat congenital myopia, but it is used only in extreme cases. There are several ways to perform surgery:
- Scleroplasty is recommended for a rapid decline in vision and rapid growth of the eyeball. Surgery helps prevent stretching of the sclera while strengthening the back of the retina.
- Keratotomy is most often used for congenital myopia. Such an operation is considered extremely difficult, but effective.
Laser methods for the correction of congenital myopia are used only when the patient reaches the age of majority. Risking the he alth of a baby at an earlier age is not worth it.
Forecasts and prevention
Unfortunately, it is impossible today to completely cure congenital myopathy, especially if the disease is accompanied by complications and hereditary factors. The therapy allows you to stop the loss of vision and significantly reduce the risk of negative consequences. The most dangerous is the progressive variety of myopia with further pathological changes in the retina.
To prevent intrauterine myopia in a baby, a woman in position should carefullymonitor your he alth. It is very important to eat a balanced diet, use vitamin complexes recommended by your doctor. In addition, a woman should give up all bad habits, walk in the fresh air as often as possible and adhere to general rules of personal hygiene.
If there is a genetic predisposition, it is necessary to inform the pediatrician about this factor - in this way, early diagnosis of the disease can be carried out and appropriate treatment can be started.
