Pediatric Ophthalmology | Adult Strabismus Treatment

Welcome to the office of Dr. Andrew N. Blatt.

Office Hours

Our office is conveniently located in Creve Coeur at 675 Old Ballas Road, Suite 220, in St. Louis, Missouri. We are open Monday through Friday from 8am to 4pm. We can be reached at 314-997-3937. If you have an emergency, you may contact Dr. Blatt or a covering physician through Dr. Blatt's exchange at 314-388-5172.

We specialize in both Pediatric Ophthalmology and Adults with complex eye muscle disorders. Using state-of-the-art technology and having over 15 years of surgical experience, our goal is to provide the very best eye care in a warm and caring environment. For more information or to schedule an appointment, please call us at 314-997-3937.

Diagnosis:

Pediatric Strabismus:

Pediatric strabismus is a visual defect in which the eyes are misaligned and point in different directions. One eye may look straight ahead, while the other eye turns inward, outward, upward, or downward.

The eye may be constant, or intermittent. About 4% of all children in the United States have strabismus; it can also occur later in life. Strabismus occurs in males and females and it may run in families.

Adult Strabismus:

Nearly four in every 100 adults have strabismus. Strabismus is a condition in which the eyeballs are not aligned properly. Strabismus in adults is often the result of progressive, untreated, or unsuccessfully treated strabismus from childhood. There are many adults who develop strabismus as the result of an injury or disease, which then frequently leads to double vision. In the past, eye doctors thought that adults with misaligned eyes could not be treated successfully, or that treatment was "only cosmetic".

Advances in the management of misaligned eyes now provides benefits to most adults as well as children. Treating adults with strabismus can alleviate double vision, improve depth perception, and the field of vision.

Amblyopia:

Amblyopia is poor vision in an eye that did not develop normal sight during early childhood. It is sometimes called "lazy eye". When one eye develops good vision while the other does not, the eye with poorer vision in called amblyopic. Usually, only one eye is affected by amblyopia, but it is possible for both eyes to be amblyopic. The condition is common, affecting approximately 2 or 3 out of every 100 people. The best time to correct amblyopia is during infancy or early childhood.

The medication atropine can be used to treat amblyopia or lazy eye as an alternative to patching. Atropine dilates the eye and temporarily paralyzes the focusing eye muscle. As a result, the vision is blurred and the pupil appears enlarged and unreactive to light. When used to treat "lazy eye", atropine is instilled in the eye with the better vision. Atropine does not damage the better eye. By creating a blurred image in this eye, the brain is forced to use the lazy eye for clear vision. The more the child uses the lazy eye the better the vision will become. Atropine may sometimes be used in conjunction with an eye patch or glasses to further encourage the child to use the lazy eye.

Pseudostrabismus:

The eyes of infants often appear to be crossed though actually they are not. This condition is called pseudostrabismus. Young children often have a wide, flat nose and fold of skin at the inner eyelid that can make the eyes appear crossed. This appearance of strabismus will often improve as the child grows. A child will not outgrow true strabismus.

Cataract:

A cataract is a clouding of the normally clear lens in the eye. Infantile cataracts are usually due to lens malformation early intrauterine. Cataracts in older children usually occur as a result of a less severe malformation or following eye trauma. If the cataract is very dense, vision in that eye may be slight to moderately blurred. Cataracts are removed by surgery, and an intraocular lens implant is placed in the eye to restore vision.

Nasolacrimal Duct Obstruction:

Tears normally drain from the eye through small openings in the corner of the upper and lower eyelids. From there, the tears enter the nose through a drainage system know as the nasolacrimal duct. A blocked tear duct occurs when the opening of the duct is obstructed or fails to open properly. Over 5% of infants are born with symptoms of nasolacrimal duct obstruction affecting one or both eyes. Over 90% of these obstructions resolve spontaneously within the first year of life.

One or more of the following treatments may be recommended: tear duct massage, topical antibiotics, tear duct probing and balloon dilation, or tear duct probing with tube placement.