Scotophobic children may be night blind

Children who are terribly afraid of the dark may have congenital night blindness. Sidiki and colleagues (p 211) describe two young children with excessive and irrational fear of the dark; they could not move in dark rooms and wanted the curtains closed against the dark outside. In daylight these children had normal vision, and ocular examination was normal. Both cases had a family history of impaired vision, and investigations showed they had congenital stationary night blindness. The children were helped by having light in their bedrooms.
 
(Credit: JOE MIKOS/PHOTONICA)



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Relevant Article

Lesson of the week: Fear of the dark in children: is stationary night blindness the cause?
Sikander S Sidiki, Ruth Hamilton, and Gordon N Dutton
BMJ 2003 326: 211-212. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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