Children are not the same as small adults. And hence eye disorders in children are not the same as adults, and cannot be treated in the same way as adults. The major difference between an adult’s eyes and children’s eyes is the ongoing development, whereas adult’s development is over, here we are dealing with a mature eye. child’s eye which is still in the phase of development responds differently from that of the mature adult eye. As per the phase of development children’s eyes encounter different developmental as well as metabolic disturbances and get affected which needs a different approach from that of mature eyes. In children’s eyes time is of the essence, as treatment done at an early stage of development will lead to good outcomes as against delayed treatment in which precious time of development is lost and may lead to undesirable outcomes.
A pediatric ophthalmologist is a super specialty doctor, who is specifically trained to deal with children’s eyes. Training lasts for 1 ½ to 2 years after completion of post-graduation in ophthalmology. Pediatric ophthalmologists clinic is equipped with special pediatric equipment which is different from adult eye equipment. And so is the clinic which has a child-friendly environment and is loaded with toys. As we know children are unable to understand a problem and neither can they communicate and hence they suffer. Pediatric ophthalmologists are a doctor who is specially trained to deal with newborns, infants, and children so that developmental eye and vision problems are recognized and are treated as early as possible so that the normal developmental process can proceed.