Outcome of Strabismus in Children with Cataracts

We characterized the outcome of strabismus in 54 pediatric patients with cataracts. Patients were less than 18 years of age at the time of undergoing cataract extraction with or without intraocular lens (IOL) implantation. Of 54 patients, 24 (44%) were male; 30 (56%) were female. 36 (67%) had congenital cataract; 18 (33%) had acquired cataract. Average age at cataract surgery was 40.39 months (SD: 38.82; range: 2-156). All patients had strabismus at the time of diagnosis of the cataracts. One year after cataract surgery, 39 (72%) patients had resolution or improvement of strabismus without surgery at an average of 3.8 months (SD: 3.6; range 0 to 12 months); 15 (28%) of patients required strabismus surgery. No association was found between resolution of strabismus, gender, the presence of congenital or acquired cataract, unilateral or bilateral cataract, duration of cataract, and the presence of IOL or aphakia. Strabismus was more likely to resolve without surgical intervention if the child was older at the time of diagnosis of cataract. The predicted value of resolution at 50 months of age is 70% and increases with age.