Eye Tracking Problem

My son had the same problem. We used Dr. Lane in Lewisville. He did a really good job with my son. I found him to be honest and open to any questions. His staff was very nice as well. www.lanelearningcenter.com

Good luck with this. I have a 5 year old that is legally blind so we've delt with a lot of eye issues. If you find that the doctor you see is the not what you are looking for my sons Eye doctor's office specializes in pediatrics as well as strabismus which is when the two eyes are crossed or don't work together. If you would like additional opinions I'll be happy to forward you the information.

A. if you don't have any joy with your appointment on the 15th please give Dr Moody a call. He is a pediactric muscle specialist and in a couple of locations - I see him in Irving. Anyway, a lot of people, pharmasists, other doctors know of him & recommend him. I was new to Dallas so I asked everyone - and they all come through for me - he is very skilled, knowledgable & experienced.

A., your son is not too young to have an eye exam. Our son had a similar problem. The condition is called exotropia. We took him to Dr. David Weakley at Children's Medical Center. They were great! Even though he had 20/20 vision, he did have to have surgery to correct it because it can lead to vision loss. Good luck.

I am no expert by any means but he could have a lazy eye or weak eye muscles. I would take him to an eye doctor.

This could (only an opinion) be something like deslexia, only not that/ A friend of mine had a daughter that they didn't catch until up in grade school , like 4th grade. She seemed to see, and was very smart,but failing in school, and they found out she had a problem reading anything, and it wasn't dislexia, but she would not be able to focus on one line, and they found a special Dr. that dlet with thistype problem and she had eye exercises, and I think even colored paper to put on the page, not sure about all that, but she is in college now and doing fine. This may not be the problem with your child, but if it is, if they catch it this quick, there shouldn't be any problem at school at all.

I think its call a stigmatism... there are exercises he can do you should have his eyes checked by a realy eye dr not a eye glasses dr...(no offense to eye glasses dr's I just mean one who might be a specialist) :o)

Good luck
A. J

My daughter was 2 when we noticed her eye "wandering" when she was sleepy. Dr. Alan Davis covered one eye, then pulled his hand away and immediately saw it. He diagnosed her with Strabismus. She had surgery, which he said works 20% of the time, or they have to have another surgery. She ended up having 2 surgeries and has no problems now. The surgeries are as minor as getting tubes in the ears. We LOVE Dr. Davis, ###-###-####. Good luck! J.

My daughter was 4 when she got her first pair of glasses.

Her eyes wondered. I was told it was underdeveloped muscles. When they are wondering you are unable to focus properly. It never happens with glasses on. And it has gotten much better as she has gotten older and her eye muscles stronger. She cannot see distance as well. Close up she has the vision of a hawk!!!

I am sure there are a ton of reasons for this problem.

There are surgeries to correct such problems. They are considered cosmetic and not covered by insurance. Additionally they do not always work. I have a "lazy" eye and have had 3 surgeries to correct it. My eye still wonders.

Hi A.,
The Dr. is a good idea, also, think about an early elementary teacher -- they might give him some games to play to strengthen his tracking -- and some ideas for you to work with him.

Best wishes!
A.

Hi A.! I would definitely recommend an eye examination with an optometrist or pediatric ophthalmologist. I am an OD so here are a few things to expect. The doctor will dilate his eyes so to get an accurate prescription. The drops don't hurt but children will usually cry a little. Then we use special scopes to obtain a reflex off the retina to determine the prescription. This is b/c it's hard enough for some adults to do the 'which is better 1 or 2' test. He may be fine but I wonder if he does have a far-sighted prescription meaning he sees well at most distances but with prolonged near work he might need a prescription. You can definitely contact your son's doctor but they only perform vision screenings at a distance and the near vision is as important. Hope this helps!

A., I would also recommend Dr. David Stager, Jr. in Plano. Our son surprised us when he had his pre-kindergarten eye exam...we had not realized he was having similar problems. We saw one pediatric opthamologist; that experience was very frightening to our son and quite frustrating to us as parents. (Poor "bedside" manner and too much ego for bewildered parents!) Dr. Stager was recommended by our insurance company and we have always been pleased. (Gentle and kind treatment, taking time for explanations). He can be hard to get in to see so I suggest you start now. Good luck! Our little guy is now a big guy, but wore glasses for several years and then didn't need them anymore. He was certainly cute when he looked like Harry Potter!

My four year old has a similar problem - his left eye kind of wanders slightly toward his nose sometimes, especially if he has been looking at something up close and then looks up at something further away. Most people don't notice it too much unless you're watching pretty closely, but it drives me crazy! His eye doctor calls it strabismus (not sure of spelling), and it is caused by weak eye muscles so you can have good vision but still have it. In serious cases it can be corrected with surgery, but often you just need exercises to strengthen the eye. Right now my son wears a patch over his good eye for 30 to 40 minutes per day so his weak eye has to do more work. The concern is if it goes uncorrected the weak eye will actually stop focusing, and you can lose vision in that eye (not blindness, but loss of acuity). Definately have your doctor take a look at him to see what they can do. Happy holidays!

At 2 1/2 my daughter's eye started crossing. We went to Dr. David Stager Jr. in Plano, a Pedi Opthamologist. She was very farsighted and I had no idea because she could see books and toys fine. She is now 10 and is expected to be out of glasses by 13 or so. I have heard that some have not been happy there but I also met a man on a plane that brings his child from West Texas. We are very pleased with her progress and she is fine with going except for getting her eyes dialated.

Good Luck. Neither my husband or I wear glasses so this was new territory for us.

Call Dr. Charles Shidlofsky in Plano. He specializes in this. Google his name.
L.

Dr. Charles Shidlofsky in Plano just east of the Tom Thumb at Parker and the Tollway. He is a nuero ophthalmologist and does all sorts of special prism glasses and eye development therapy. We have used him and very much recommend him. Good luck email if you can't find his number. Thank you.