Migraine is classified as classic migraine, or migraine with aura common migraine, or migraine without aura and complicated migraine. Because of the frequently associated visual disturbances, children with migraine often are referred to a pediatric ophthalmologist.
Migraine is a common form of headache in children. Blurry vision occurs when the eyes are raised to look in the distance. In this situation, the child becomes focused excessively at near, actually locking the eyes in this focused position. Sometimes, accommodative spasm may be the diagnosis. The child may complain of blurry vision or may simply complain of headache with or after reading. The signs and symptoms of this condition are exactly the same as convergence insufficiency.
The child may complain of double vision or may be seen closing or covering one eye, presumably to avoid double vision.
Nausea and vomiting do not occur with this condition. The child does not complain of headaches that awaken the child from sleep or of headaches that occur upon awakening in the morning. The problem may occur several times a week, if not daily, and may occur in school or with homework, with relief on weekends or vacations. This process usually overtaxes already weak convergence amplitudes, which are a measure of a person's ability to focus both eyes simultaneously on a reading target. The child may have difficulty with learning to read in particular, the child may hold reading material close to the face in an attempt to overcome the blurry vision. Headache itself does not cause medical damage, but one of the above listed conditions may cause it.Ĭonvergence insufficiency usually occurs in the school-aged child who complains of a chronic headache, typically for several months. The conditions listed above can be ocular causes of headaches. Headaches caused by convergence or accommodative insufficiency usually do not occur until school age and often not until third or fourth grade when the reading print becomes smaller and it takes a longer time to finish assignments.Ī headache is a symptom of a problem, not a disease in its own right. Migraine headaches occur in 2.7% of children by age 7 and in 10.9% of children by age 14 onset in children by age 4 is not uncommon. Most commonly, these children are aged from 2 years to 19 years, with an average age of 10 years. With the pediatrician, the pediatric ophthalmologist helps to diagnose and treat the child.Ĭhildren often complain of headaches. Typically, when a child complains of a headache to a pediatrician that may be attributed to eye fatigue and/or eyestrain, the child is referred to a pediatric ophthalmologist, a doctor who specializes in eye care and surgery for children.