There are risks that are related to the general anaesthesia required and risks specific to the eye surgery. Once your child is asleep the skin around the eyes and the surface of the eye is cleaned with disinfectant Betadine. The eyelids are then held apart with a small clamp and the eye rotated so that the muscle that is to be operated on is accessible.
The tissue conjunctiva over the white of the eye is then cut open with scissors to expose the muscle and then the muscle is either weakened or strengthened. The muscle is reattached to the eye wall with a suture thread. The opening in the conjunctiva may or may not be sutured.
This process is repeated for each muscle that is operated on. Most children do not need a detailed explanation of what is involved in an operation but need to have questions answered honestly, for example: "Yes, your eyes will be a bit sore after the operation. Being positive about the visit to hospital and operation will help your child. After completing admission paper work your child will be assessed by nursing staff and then seen by the anaesthetist. In general the order of operating list is from youngest to oldest child.
As there is always some waiting involved bringing some toys or books to keep your child amused is a very good idea. In general one parent will be able to go with your child into the anaesthetic room or operating theatre.
Children can be anaesthetised "put to sleep" with either gas given by mask or by an injection. Please discuss these different methods of going to sleep with the anaesthetist during the pre-operative assessment. Your child will go to sleep quite suddenly and it is not uncommon to feel a bit helpless and distressed by this. If you feel faint sit down on the floor. We won't be upset and may not catch you if you faint while standing! Once your child is asleep you will be accompanied out of the anaesthetic room to the waiting room.
If you go for a walk while your child is being operated on please return to the designated waiting area at the time suggested so that I can speak to you as soon as the operation is completed. Most squint operations take between 30 to 70 minutes. Most often no patch is required. There may be slightly blood stained tears for a few minutes after the operation and a little dried blood on the eyelids.
This can be washed off with saline or cool boiled water. The eyes will be blood-shot and appear "bruised" over the muscle s that were operated on and this will increase over the fist two days after the operation. The redness will go over 1 - 2 weeks though there may be a persisting pink area on the white of the eye for weeks to months after a squint operation, especially if a muscle was tightened resected.
The eyes may appear much better aligned as soon as they are opened after the operation. Often there will be noticeable variation in the alignment with the eyes moving in and out a bit as the brain "learns" to control the eyes following the surgery. This variation usually settles in days to a week or so. Your will stay in hospital until both you and the nursing staff are happy for your child to be discharged. This is generally two to three hours after the operation is finished. If you live more than two hours drive from hospital it is recommended you stay closer to the hospital for the first night.
Young children less than 2 years old are often keen to drink immediately after waking. Once the recovery room nursing staff or ward staff are satisfied your child is sufficiently "awake" you will be able to offer your child a drink. In older children small volumes of drinks and then solid food should be offered once your child is awake.
Most older children will only eat small amounts of food during the afternoon and evening after the operation. Over feeding soon after the operation may increase the chance of vomiting in older children.
Most children will only require paracetamol for pain relief. For children younger than one year often no pain relief is needed after leaving hospital.
Pain relief should be given if a younger child will not settle with soothing and feeding and in an older child if you believe there is pain. Codeine can be given if the pain is severe in older children. This may increase the risk of vomiting slightly. For children having surgery on one eye only an injection of local anaesthetic may be given to lessen pain after the operation.
Following such an injection the vision will be poor in that eye for several hours and a patch will be placed over the eye. Often there is some blurring of vision for a few days after surgery.
Younger children will not notice this. Double vision diplopia is common after squint surgery. It is usually quite transient. A small number of older children usually over 10 to 12 years of age will experience more troublesome double vision.
Complications from squint surgery are rare. They may include over or under-correction of the squint, double vision which may or may not settle , or very rarely an infection or inflammatory reaction, which would need further treatment.
In rare cases, a further operation may be needed if, for example, the muscle were to slip. The risk to your sight is minimal around one in 10, as the surgeon does not go inside the eye itself. Some patients require more than one operation before their eyes appear straight — this is quite common if the squint is severe. An orthoptist a health professional trained in visual development and eye movement and ophthalmologist a doctor trained in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases of the eye and visual system can advise when surgery is appropriate.
Accept cookies This site uses cookies. Find a treatment Keyword s. Home Find a Treatment Adult squint strabismus surgery Adult squint strabismus surgery A squint strabismus is a condition where the eyes are misaligned or crossed.
What does squint surgery involve? What to expect? On the day You will be admitted to your own private room and meet the anaesthetist and surgeon before the operation to answer any questions you may have. After the surgery After the operation, most people experience some discomfort, mainly a scratchy feeling, for a day or two.
Risks of squint surgery Complications from squint surgery are rare. A general anaesthetic carries a very slight risk of complications. Alternative treatments Other treatments for squint may involve some or all of the following: glasses patching exercises prisms Botox injections.
Make an enquiry with Ophthalmology:. Please choose Serious complications are estimated to occur in 2 to 3 in every 1, procedures. Page last reviewed: 06 January Next review due: 06 January Surgery - Squint Contents Overview Surgery. Preparing for squint surgery Before surgery: you'll attend a pre-operative assessment — some simple tests will be done to check that you can have the operation and you'll have the chance to ask any questions about it you'll be told when to come into hospital for the procedure and when you should stop eating and drinking beforehand you'll need to sort out how you'll be getting home — you can usually go home the same day, ideally with a friend or family member to escort you as you may be sleepy ; you will not be able to drive for at least a day or two if you've had surgery What happens during squint surgery Squint surgery is done under general anaesthetic where you're asleep and usually takes less than an hour.
During the procedure: the eye is held open using an instrument called a lid speculum — sometimes it may be necessary to operate on both eyes to get the alignment right the surgeon detaches part of the muscle connected to the eye and moves it into a new position so that the eyes point in the same direction the muscles are fixed in their new position with dissolvable stitches — these are hidden behind the eye so you will not be able to see them afterwards Sometimes, in adults and teenagers, further adjustments to your eye muscles may be made when you've woken up after the operation.
After squint surgery Following the operation, a pad may be put over the treated eye. You may experience some of the following side effects: eye pain — this tends to last at least a few days and often feels like grit or sand in the eye; taking simple painkillers such as paracetamol can help, although children under 16 should not be given aspirin red eyes — this can last for a couple of months; you may also have blood in your tears for a day or two itchy eyes — this is caused by the stitches and it may last a few weeks until they dissolve; try not to rub your eyes double vision — this usually passes after a week or so, but can last longer You'll be asked to attend visits with an eye specialist after surgery.
Returning to normal activities It can take several weeks to fully recover from squint surgery. Your doctor or care team can give you specific advice about when you can return to your normal activities, but generally speaking: you can read or watch TV and carry out other daily activities as soon as you feel able to you can return to work or school after about a week do not drive for at least a day or two as the anaesthetic may not have fully worn off , or for longer if you have double vision try not to get any soap or shampoo in the eye when washing most people return to exercise and sport after about a week, although you may be advised to avoid swimming and contact sports such as rugby for 2 to 4 weeks do not use make-up close to the eyes for 4 weeks your child should not play in sand or use face paint for 2 weeks If you wore glasses before surgery, you'll probably still need to wear them.
Risks of squint surgery As with any kind of operation, there's a risk of complications after surgery to fix a squint.
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