Based on the examination results, the eye specialist might suggest one of these treatments: glasses, vision therapy, patching, botox injections or strabismus surgery.
Glasses
Glasses can aid in managing eye squints by correcting refractive errors that contribute to the condition. Glasses help reduce eye strain and promote proper eye alignment by increasing clarity and focus for each eye. Specialised glasses with prism lenses can further enhance eye coordination and binocular vision in some cases. Glasses may also incorporate vision therapy exercises to strengthen eye muscles and improve visual processing skills, supporting effective treatment of squints. While glasses play a beneficial role in squint management, they are often just one part of a comprehensive treatment plan.
Vision Therapy
Vision therapy can help in treating squints by improving eye coordination, strengthening eye muscles, and enhancing binocular vision. Through tailored exercises and techniques, vision therapy can help to retrain the visual system, promote proper eye alignment, and reduce the occurrence of squints, complementing other treatment approaches for optimal results.
Patching
Patching can help with squints by promoting the development of binocular vision and strengthening the weaker eye. By covering the stronger eye with a patch, the brain is encouraged to rely on the weaker eye, which can improve visual acuity and eye coordination. Patching can be an effective treatment strategy, especially in cases of amblyopia (lazy eye) associated with squints, to encourage proper visual development and alignment.
Botox Injections
Botox injections can be used to correct some squints, but the effects are temporary so injections need to be repeated regularly.
If surgery is required, squint operations are usually carried under a general anaesthetic.
Each eye has six muscles, which can be accessed through the conjunctiva (the membrane overlying the white outer coat of the eyeball). The muscles may be slackened off or tightened up and this corrects the squint. The eye will not be taken out of the socket during surgery. Your eye may be covered with an eye pad immediately following your operation, which can be removed the next day.
You can go home on the same day of the surgery. The effect of the operation in straightening the eyes is visible by the next day. There is no need to take time off from work as there is no pain or patching involved.
