Pediatric Ophthalmologist

A pediatric ophthalmologist is a physician who specializes in the eyes and vision of babies, children, and teenagers. A typical day mixes clinic visits and procedures. You examine newborns who were referred after a failed screening, check toddlers for crossed or wandering eyes, prescribe glasses for a first-grader who cannot read the board, and manage amblyopia, often called lazy eye, with patching or drops. Some days you also operate, most often on eye muscles to correct strabismus or on blocked tear ducts. You work with children who cannot always describe what they see, so you spend as much time with parents, pediatricians, and teachers as with the patient.