Does lying on your side cause strabismus? Misconceptions and truths about strabismusOphthalmologist Sohyun Bae

Does sleeping on your side really make you strabismus?

It is not true that lying on your side will cause strabismus. Most people have strabismus since childhood. In childhood, people don't know about it because they don't have any major symptoms and don't have any spots, but they may feel strabismus symptoms by looking at their smartphones for a long time at night.

If you experience symptoms of strabismus

The first, when presbyopia develops with age. Strabismus, in which the eyes are turned outward, is called "external strabismus." Even if you have external strabismus, you can focus on your eyes by pulling them with fusion force. When presbyopia occurs, the ability to see nearby objects decreases, and the ability to fuse is hindered, which can lead to uncomfortable symptoms such as seeing objects in two.

Second, it's time to lie on your side and look at things. If you lie on your side and look at things, your eyes will be obscured by pillows or blankets. Strabismus can be kept hidden by using both eyes, but if one eye does not have good vision, the force that compensates for each other's vision is broken, and the original strabismus is exposed.

If strabismus occurs

Strabismus is not an easy condition to develop. If strabismus that you didn't have as a child and you develop it as an adult, it's likely a dangerous sign. It is possible that there is a problem with the cranial nerves related to the muscles that move the eyes, resulting in 'paralytic strabismus'. It could be caused by a condition such as thyroid disease or myasthenia gravis, which can impede the movement of the muscles that move the eyes. It seems difficult to say that it simply creates strabismus without looking at the smartphone for a long time or lying on the side.