Esotropia is a form of strabismus in which one or both eyes turn inward. The condition can be constantly present, or occur intermittently, and can give the affected individual a "cross-eyed" appearance. It is the opposite of exotropia and usually involves more severe axis deviation than esophoria. Esotropia is sometimes erroneously called "lazy eye", which describes the condition of amblyopia; a reduction in vision of one or both eyes that is not the result of any pathology of the eye and cannot be resolved by the use of corrective lenses. Amblyopia can, however, arise as a result of esotropia occurring in childhood: In order to relieve symptoms of diplopia or double vision, the child's brain will ignore or "suppress" the image from the esotropic eye, which when allowed to continue untreated will lead to the development of amblyopia. Treatment options for esotropia include glasses to correct refractive errors, the use of prisms, orthoptic exercises, or eye muscle surgery. The term is from Greek eso meaning "inward" and trope meaning "a turning".
Orthoptics is a profession allied to the eye care profession. Orthoptists are the experts in diagnosing and treating defects in eye movements and problems with how the eyes work together, called binocular vision. These can be caused by issues with the muscles around the eyes or defects in the nerves enabling the brain to communicate with the eyes. Orthoptists are responsible for the diagnosis and non-surgical management of strabismus (cross-eyed), amblyopia and eye movement disorders. The word orthoptics comes from the Greek words ὀρθός orthos, "straight" and ὀπτικός optikοs, "relating to sight" and much of the practice of orthoptists concerns disorders of binocular vision and defects of eye movement. Orthoptists are trained professionals who specialize in orthoptic treatment, such as eye patches, eye exercises, prisms or glasses. They commonly work with paediatric patients and also adult patients with neurological conditions such as stroke, brain tumours or multiple sclerosis. With specific training, in some countries orthoptists may be involved in monitoring of some forms of eye disease, such as glaucoma, cataract screening and diabetic retinopathy.
Strabismus is a vision disorder in which the eyes do not properly align with each other when looking at an object. The eye that is pointed at an object can alternate. The condition may be present occasionally or constantly. If present during a large part of childhood, it may result in amblyopia, or lazy eyes, and loss of depth perception. If onset is during adulthood, it is more likely to result in double vision.
Pediatric ophthalmology is a sub-speciality of ophthalmology concerned with eye diseases, visual development, and vision care in children.
The inferior rectus muscle is a muscle in the orbit near the eye. It is one of the four recti muscles in the group of extraocular muscles. It originates from the common tendinous ring, and inserts into the anteroinferior surface of the eye. It depresses the eye (downwards).
Vision therapy (VT), or behavioral optometry, is an umbrella term for alternative medicine treatments using eye exercises, based around the pseudoscientific claim that vision problems are the true underlying cause of learning difficulties, particularly in children. Vision therapy has not been shown to be effective using scientific studies, except for helping with convergence insufficiency. Most claims—for example that the therapy can address neurological, educational, and spatial difficulties—lack supporting evidence. Neither the American Academy of Pediatrics nor the American Academy of Ophthalmology support the use of vision therapy.
An eye care professional is an individual who provides a service related to the eyes or vision. It is any healthcare worker involved in eye care, from one with a small amount of post-secondary training to practitioners with a doctoral level of education.
Hypertropia is a condition of misalignment of the eyes (strabismus), whereby the visual axis of one eye is higher than the fellow fixating eye. Hypotropia is the similar condition, focus being on the eye with the visual axis lower than the fellow fixating eye. Dissociated vertical deviation is a special type of hypertropia leading to slow upward drift of one or rarely both eyes, usually when the patient is inattentive.
Marshall Miller Parks was an American ophthalmologist known to many as "the father of pediatric ophthalmology".
John Ashburnham Pratt-Johnson, FRCS(C.), FRCS(Edin.), was a Canadian ophthalmologist and Emeritus Professor of Ophthalmology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He was a famous pediatric ophthalmologist and trained many fellows at the university. He also involved himself in international cooperation to improve the status of medical care in the area of blindness prevention and access to surgical expertise for under-served areas in poor countries. As part of Orbis and the board of directors of Seva Canada Society he has helped organise funds, build facilities and train health care workers and ophthalmologists, particularly from Nepal, where prevalence of blindness is quite high.
The International Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology (IJCAHPO) is an American nonprofit professional association for Allied Ophthalmic Personnel (AOP).
Henry S. Metz is an American pediatric ophthalmologist. He was the CEO of the Smith-Kettlewell Institute in San Francisco from 2003 to 2008. Much of his early research concerned eye movements and strabismus, including saccadic velocity measurements and use of botulinum toxin.
Gene Folk was an American ophthalmologist who specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of strabismus. A charter member of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, he later served as President of this organization. With Martin Urist, Folk helped found the "Chicago" school of strabismus, whose ideas competed with and stimulated those of Marshall M. Parks, Arthur Jampolsky, and other prominent strabismologists. During the 1950s and 1960s, Urist and Knapp's contributions led to a much improved understanding of so-called A and V "pattern" strabismus, where the amplitude of deviation varies in up- and downgaze.
Burt Kushner is an American pediatric ophthalmologist specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of strabismus. Kushner's contributions include demonstration of improved visual fields of patients following strabismus surgery, elucidation of torsional contribution to patients with diplopia, corticosteroid treatment of periocular capillary hemangioma, and novel hypotheses on the mechanism of "overacting" extraocular muscles.
Jane Kivlin is an American ophthalmologist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of pediatrics genetics and strabismus. A longstanding member of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, she served as President of this organization. She is well known for her contributions to the understanding of amblyopia and the ophthalmologic manifestations of shaken baby syndrome.
Marilyn T. Miller was an American pediatric ophthalmologist specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of congenital eye diseases and strabismus. She held leadership positions in her field.
The International Orthoptic Association represents over 20,000 orthoptists, in over 20 countries.
Elias I. Traboulsi is a physician in the fields of ophthalmic genetics and pediatric ophthalmology.
Alan Brown Scott was an American ophthalmologist specializing in eye muscles and their disorders, such as strabismus. He is best known for his work in developing and manufacturing the drug that became known as Botox, research described as "groundbreaking" by the ASCRS.
The Journal of Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus is a bimonthly peer-reviewed publication for pediatric ophthalmologists. The journal publishes articles regarding eye disorders in pediatric individuals and the treatment of strabismus in all age groups.
