Many parents hope that their children can inherit their high-quality genes, but genetic inheritance is not something that can be done arbitrarily.
Good genes can be inherited, and bad genes can also be inherited, and even pathogenic genes can affect a child’s entire life. What eye diseases may be inherited from offspring?
myopia
There are two main factors that cause myopia, the first is the environment, and the second is genetics. Myopia can be divided into ordinary myopia and high myopia. Patients with ordinary myopia usually have a degree of myopia below 600 degrees, and the probability of inheriting this myopia to offspring is relatively small. However, high myopia is different from it, as the degree of myopia usually exceeds 600 degrees, also known as pathological myopia. The children of high myopia patients have a higher chance of developing myopia than the normal population. If both parents have high myopia, the chance will be even higher.
response plan
For children with a high probability of developing myopia, prevention and control of myopia should be the main focus, as myopia is irreversible once it occurs. In daily life, children can develop good eye habits, such as not reading or writing in bed, not using electronic devices for a long time, not playing with their phones while walking, driving, or eating, etc. In addition, parents should increase their children’s outdoor activity time. Long term outdoor activities can relax the regulating muscles of the eyes, relieve visual fatigue, and help prevent the development of myopia.
Congenital cataract
Congenital cataract refers to the cataract that exists before and after birth, or gradually forms in childhood. Its incidence rate is 0.05% in China, which is the second largest cause of blindness in children. (Data sourced from Baidu Baike) Congenital cataracts can occur in families or randomly; It can occur in one or both eyes, and may also be accompanied by other congenital abnormalities in the eyes or body. Congenital cataracts pose great harm to children’s vision. In addition to the opportunity to cause blindness, they can also lead to amblyopia, seriously affecting children’s visual development.
response plan
Due to the higher incidence of congenital cataracts in offspring of consanguineous marriages, it is advisable to avoid choosing partners with blood ties. If a child is unfortunately born with cataracts, surgery can be considered to remove the cloudy lens and implant an artificial lens. Children with severe congenital cataracts should be treated as early as possible, and surgery can be performed at around 6 months of age.
glaucoma
Glaucoma is the second most common cause of blindness in the world, which can lead to blindness in one or both eyes and is irreversible. Research has shown that glaucoma has the characteristics of a polygenic inherited disease, and due to the multiple types of glaucoma, their genetic patterns also vary. Primary open-angle glaucoma is usually inherited in an autosomal dominant or recessive manner, while primary angle closure glaucoma is inherited in an autosomal dominant or polygenic manner.
response plan
Glaucoma is a polygenic genetic disorder. If someone in the family has glaucoma or other diseases, they should go to the hospital for regular check ups. They can also wear a 24-hour continuous intraocular pressure monitor to monitor intraocular pressure and prevent the occurrence of glaucoma. If you experience symptoms such as eye swelling, nausea and vomiting, headache, eye swelling, decreased vision, and rainbow vision, it is important to seek medical attention promptly to avoid worsening the condition due to treatment.
strabismus
Strabismus refers to the inability of both eyes to simultaneously focus on the same target. Due to the imbalance of the visual axis in both eyes, one of the eyeballs tilts inward, outward, upward, or upward, which is one of the common eye diseases among children. Strabismus can be divided into congenital strabismus and acquired strabismus. Congenital strabismus is usually related to family genetic factors and can occur at birth or within 6 months after birth. The angle of deviation is generally large and often manifests as hyperopic refraction.
response plan
There are two methods for treating congenital strabismus: non-surgical and surgical. Non surgical treatment methods include refractive correction, visual axis correction, and occlusion therapy, all of which are designed to address the underlying causes of the patient, such as refractive errors, binocular anisometropia, fusion difficulties, and monocular amblyopia. When necessary, surgery can be performed before the age of two in sick children to correct visual axis imbalance by tightening one muscle of the eyeball and relaxing the other muscle.
Kind Reminder
There are various types of inherited eye diseases, including congenital ptosis, congenital microphthalmia, retinoblastoma, color blindness, etc. These diseases are usually difficult to treat.
In some provinces of China, which have a large population and a high incidence of hereditary eye diseases, scientific genetic testing has become an important method to assist in the early diagnosis of ophthalmic genetic diseases, which is of great significance for guiding the fertility of patients’ families. It is recommended that unmarried young people with a history of hereditary eye diseases in their families actively seek genetic diagnosis and counseling for hereditary eye diseases in hospitals, taking responsibility for the visual health of their offspring.