Young children, especially infants, cannot always tell their parents about vision problems. Most children do not know they see less than perfectly. Some may try to communicate a problem but cannot be understood. As a result, parents must monitor young people for symptoms of eye disease in order to detect possible conditions and seek necessary treatment.
Pupil Irregularities
The pupil can indicate many eye conditions in babies and children. A pupil with a white appearance may indicate a serious condition such as a tumor or detached retina, according to the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. A pupil that does not appear completely round indicates that the iris, the colored part of the eye, did not form properly. This may offer a clue to an eye doctor that the child has a significant problem inside the eye. Parents should also contact an eye doctor if one pupil appears larger than the other, which may point to a neurological condition.
Turned Eye
Some children have a condition called strabismus, commonly referred to as "lazy eye." One eye may turn up, down, out or in, which may result in poor vision in the turned eye, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians. In some children, the condition is subtle and goes undetected for a length of time. Once diagnosed, the doctor may recommend patching the "normal" eye at specified intervals to force the turned eye to work. For some young people, this method works with good results. Other children may require a surgical procedure to repair the muscles before or after the periodic patching.
Head Movement
Babies and young children may try to accommodate blurry vision by moving their heads. This is called a head tilt. A child may keep her head tilted to one side when looking at an object or lean her head forward, according to the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. Head movement such as this may help bring together double vision or blurred vision for the child but does not allow the child to have the best possible vision. Parents should contact an eye doctor to determine if glasses will correct the vision or if another condition is present.
