Prevalence of Strabismus in Patients with Cerebral Palsy

Background: Cerebral palsy is a condition usually associated with treatable ocular pathologies such as strabismus. Objectives: 1. To observe and estimate the prevalence of various types of strabismus in children with cerebral palsy 2. To estimate the strength of association between the presences of squint and birth weight, and squint and gestational age of the child. Materials and Methods: This cross sectional, hospital based study was conducted in Dr SM CSI Medical College, Karakonam, Trivandrum. Eighty children diagnosed with cerebral palsy were included in the study. A detailed ophthalmic evaluation was done. Presence of and type of strabismus was noted. Results: Strabismus was found in 32 of 80 (40%) cases enrolled in the study. Exotropia was found to be 3.4 times more than esotropia. Alternating exotropia was the commonest type accounting for 17 cases (21.3%). No statistical association was found between squint and birth weight or gestational age.