A cataract is a clouding or opaque area over the lens of the eye. This is normally transparent and as this thickening occurs this will prevent light ray from passing through the lens. Cataracts can occur in about 0.4 percent of children and they can affect one eye or both. There are small cataracts that do not cause any visual symptoms but there are those case wherein it progresses and cause visual problem. There are some children who are born with it or develops it later in life.

These are the causes of cataracts in children:
1. Cataracts can be acquired due to trauma
2. Juvenile diabetes
3. poisoning
4. use of steroids
5. childhood disease like rheumatoid arthritis
6. complications form certain eye disease like glaucoma.

The treatment depends on the child's age, overall health and medical history, extent of the disease, the child's tolerance for medications, procedures or therapies, expectations of the course of the disease and the parent's opinion or preference.

The exact cause of cataracts in children is unknown. Cataracts can either be present at birth or develop later in their life. It has actually been estimated that one in every 250 children will develop a cataract either right before they are born or during the early part of their childhood. Even though the exact cause of cataracts in children is unknown, many are actually hereditary. Also, a number of genetic disorders have been related to bilateral cataracts.

The treatment for cataracts in children is surgery to remove the cataracts as soon as they are diagnosed, even if the child is only a few weeks old. The surgery will remove the cataract piece by piece through a small incision. The surgeon will operate with the child under general anesthesia utilizing a special microscope. Once the surgery removes the cataract, focusing power will be returned in one of a number of ways. Contact lenses or intraocular lenses can be used. Additionally, glasses can also help the child’s vision.

The bottom line is that I’m sure the physician your nephew is seeing will recommend the best choice to help correct the cataracts. Good luck!

A cataract is when the lens in the eye becomes cloudy and interferes with vision. A potential problem with cataract in one eye of a child is that he or she may ignore the eye with the cataract and a lazy eye or wandering eye may develop.

Sometimes, cataracts are present at birth, and others develop during the first few months or years of life. Many times, the cause is unknown, but it can be inhereted orrelated to some systematic abnormalities. Cataracts may occur due to injury or inflammation associated with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. A child with a cataract should have surgery and rehabilitation as soon as possible to increase chances of full visual development. Sometimes, if the eye has other abnormalities, there is a limit to the amount of visual development attainable.

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