Rarely, other infections during pregnancy can cause cataracts in the newborn. Some metabolic disorders in the infant can lead to cataract formation. Most, such as Galactosaemia, a disorder of sugar metabolism, also result in very ill babies who fail to thrive. Cataracts are more common in young children with Down's Syndrome, a common chromosomal disorder, and this incidence increases in adolescence. A large number of other rare inherited disorders include cataract in childhood as one of their features, so many children with cataract, together with their families, are seen in hospital by a clinical geneticist who can help with diagnosis and provide advice about the risk of cataracts in future children.
Some children develop cataract later in childhood.
This can be due to a variety of causes including trauma, drugs, radiation and as a result of other eye problems eg retinal disease. This, if untreated, or even when treated late, leads to permanent changes in the visual areas of the brain and some loss of function. Research from several specialist centres has shown that surgery for dense cataracts in the newborn must thus be performed as early as possible to obtain the best visual results. Visual outcome can still vary markedly however, particularly in the child with unilateral cataract. Less dense or 'partial' cataracts may not need surgery but usually require regular follow up.