Congenital Anomalies

Boston's Children's Hospital, Mass. Eye & Ear Infirmary and the New England Medical Eye Center are known worldwide for their eye research in congenital birth defects, plus management of children's ocular diseases, retinoblastoma and eye injuries.  Whenever our services are required during an EUA (Examination Under Anesthesia), we are available for taking an impression moulding of the less than perfectly developed orbital cavity or microphthalmic eye.  We have been fortunate to work with many of these pediatric ophthalmologists as the initiator to gaining semblance of facial normalcy without or prior to surgical intervention.

It is with this in mind that we would like to enlighten the parents who have a child that was born with one of the described early prenatal embryonic deviations.  The following ocularist interpretation is from fitting experiences with many of these embryonic stage conditions.  The description may answer some of the questions you may be preparing to ask your own local or regional ocularist.  As an added bit of interest, one in every five patients seen in our laboratory is under the age of five years.  Of course, not all are congenital aberrations, but include retinoblastoma and eye injuries.

Congenital Anomalies (Photos & Descriptions)

• Primary Embryonic Stage (True Anophthalmos)
• Secondary Embryonic Stage (Definition of a Very Small Globe)
• Tertiary Embryonic Stage (True Microphthalmos)
• Congenital Buphthalmos (Glaucoma)