When it comes to eye muscle surgery, there’s a significant misunderstanding among parents and even healthcare providers. Dr. Rick Graebe, a specialist in pediatric eye care and neuro-optometric rehabilitation, offers a crucial insight: most eye muscle surgeries are unnecessary. In fact, he estimates that up to 95% of these surgeries, often performed on children, could be avoided.
Understanding Eye Muscle Surgery
Each year in the United States, approximately 1.2 million eye muscle surgeries are performed, with costs reaching up to $12,000 per procedure. These surgeries are commonly recommended for children who experience strabismus, where the eyes drift or turn inward. Many parents are told that surgery is the only solution and that it must be done quickly to avoid long-term damage.
But Dr. Graebe strongly disputes this urgency. According to him, surgery often fails to address the root cause of the problem: the brain’s inability to properly use the eyes together as a team. In many cases, surgery corrects the cosmetic appearance of the eyes but does little to improve the functional problem, resulting in the need for multiple surgeries later on. In fact, about two-thirds of these surgeries have to be redone.
Why Vision Therapy is the Better Option
The main reason surgery fails is that it treats only the symptoms, not the underlying issue. Dr. Graebe explains, “The problem isn’t with the eye muscles themselves, but with how the brain coordinates the eyes.” Vision Therapy offers a non-invasive solution that focuses on retraining the brain to work with the eyes as a team, significantly reducing the need for surgery.
Vision Therapy works similarly to physical therapy but for the eyes and brain. Through a series of personalized exercises, patients learn how to better control their eye movements, improve focus, and enhance depth perception. This therapy can be particularly effective in children, who are still developing essential visual skills.
Real-Life Success Stories
A compelling example comes from one of Dr. Graebe’s patients, a 49-year-old who had undergone eight eye surgeries but still struggled with depth perception and eye alignment. After completing Vision Therapy, this patient saw dramatic improvements in both areas. The therapy addressed the functional problem—something surgery had failed to do for decades.
Dr. Graebe has also seen success in much younger patients, including a child from Frankfort, KY, whose parents were initially told that surgery was the only option. After several months of Vision Therapy, the child’s eye coordination improved without ever needing surgery. This case is just one of many, reinforcing the effectiveness of Vision Therapy as an alternative.
The Impact on Children’s Vision Development
By the age of three, as many as 5% of children may exhibit some form of eye drift. While this may seem alarming, Dr. Graebe reassures parents that this issue is rarely urgent. He notes that using both eyes together is a learned skill, one that can be developed over time with the right intervention.
The goal of Vision Therapy is to correct the brain’s coordination, allowing children to fully develop this essential skill. Without the risks associated with surgery, Vision Therapy helps children see better, perform better in school, and avoid the emotional and physical stress of repeat surgeries.
Schedule a Pediatric Eye Exam in Central Kentucky
If your child has been recommended for eye muscle surgery, it’s important to get a second opinion. At Neuro-Visual Performance Institute, we specialize in Vision Therapy, offering non-invasive treatment options that address the root cause of vision problems.
Dr. Rick Graebe and his team are here to help families across Central and Southern Kentucky, including the greater Lexington area, Versailles, and Somerset. To schedule an appointment and learn more about how Vision Therapy can help, call us today at 859-879-3665.
Credit:
This blog is based on information from Dr. Rick Graebe as compiled and written by John Lynch.