What is ocular strabismus?

Strabismus, a common condition among children and young people, is a visual problem that causes the eyes to be misaligned and point in different directions. One eye may look straight ahead, while the other eye turns inwards, outwards, upwards or downwards. The eye turning may be consistent or it may come and go.

Strabismus can be caused by injury to a nerve or malfunction of the muscles that control the eye. The main symptom is that the eyes do not look in exactly the same direction at the same time. Eye misalignment can usually be corrected with early treatment. There are several options for aligning the eyes, such as the use of special glasses or eye patches, and, in rare cases, surgery.