One eye may look straight ahead, while the other eye turns inward, outward, upward or downward. The specific symptoms generally differ between patients. A patient suffering from strabismus may consistently experience misalignment, or the effects may come and go. The effects may also switch from eye to eye, the turned eye may straighten at times and the straight eye may turn. Strabismus is a common condition among children.
Statistics show that strabismus occurs equally in males and females.
Strabismus can be a hereditary defect, but many people who suffer from strabismus have no relatives with the defect. Causes The exact cause of strabismus has not been discovered. The eye contains six muscles which are attached to the outside of the eye and are responsible for eye movement. Two muscles are responsible for left or right movement, and the other four control angle and vertical movement. In order for both eyes to line up and focus on a single target, all of the muscles in each eye must be properly balanced and aligned.