Psychogenic blurred vision When children suddenly can not see well

Call for help of the soul: When children suddenly see blurred or distorted

While it is often physical causes that cause children to suddenly feel blurry or distorted, in some cases emotional conflict is behind the problem. According to health experts, this is much more the case for girls than for boys.

Girls are affected much more often

According to health experts, good eyesight is important for the mental and motor development of children. If the little ones suddenly see blurred or distorted, there can be a mental conflict as well as physical causes behind it. It is estimated that one to two percent of all children undergoing ophthalmic treatment are affected by such functional blurred vision, girls much more often than boys. The German Ophthalmological Society (DOG) points this out in a communication.

If children suddenly see blurred or distorted, it can be due to physical causes in addition to a mental conflict. (Image: altanaka / fotolia.com)

The eyes are not always the cause of poor eyesight

Parents whose children complain about poor eyesight usually go with their offspring immediately to the ophthalmologist.

"He is the first point of contact to clarify whether there is an organic reason for the deterioration," said Professor. med. Nicole Eter, President of the DOG.

The doctor sometimes determines that it is not on the eyes - the cornea, lens, optic nerve or macula are OK, and there is no ametropia that would help glasses.

"In this situation, the ophthalmologist may think of unpleasant scenarios," says Professor. med. Helmut Wilhelm.

"However, thinking of serious illnesses such as brain tumor or multiple sclerosis immediately and to make effortful diagnostics in the form of magnetic resonance imaging or spinal cord puncture would be the wrong way," said the neuro-ophthalmologist of the University Eye Hospital Tübingen.

The ophthalmologist should first try to actively prove that the visual function is actually intact.

"An experienced ophthalmologist will notice very quickly, if information is made, which can not be true," said the Tübingen specialist for nervous disorders.

Then the expert could create situations by different investigation strategies, in which it becomes clear that subjective statements to visual acuity or to the field of vision are not to be brought to coincide with objective findings.

Call for help of the soul

Finally, when it is proven that a child is misrepresenting their vision, the question arises as to why it does.

"In the rarest cases, it will be a deliberate deception," said Wilhelm, who sees almost every week such a patient in the clinic.

As a rule, the child suffers from an inner conflict for which there is no solution. "It's sort of a call for help from the soul, which requires our response, together with pediatricians and child psychiatrists," said the DOG expert.

Conflicts in the family and school problems

According to the DOG, causality research cites inter-family conflicts (30 percent) and school problems (25 percent) in first and second place.

In some cases, a previous craniocereberal trauma is indicated, but this can not be the cause, but at most triggers. Often the reasons remain unanswered.

Precise data on the frequency of mental disorders in adolescents are currently not available according to the experts.

However, it is assumed that about one to two percent of all children undergoing eye surgery are affected - "girls are significantly more likely than boys," reported Wilhelm.

However, there is usually no reason to worry that this condition persists.

Because in about 90 percent of cases, the symptoms disappear either relatively quickly by itself or after a short placebo therapy, for example, by means of a weak, not necessary per se glasses or drug-free eye drops.

And: "From what we know, functional visual impairment is not a sign that heralds a later psychiatric or psychosomatic illness," explained Wilhelm. (Ad)