9 year old seeing colored spots

[jennyrain]

My daughter is 9 years old and has been seeing colored spots in her vision for a few years. I do not believe these are "floaters" as she describes them as colored blobs that are always there. The colors change, the shapes of the blobs change (sometimes they are thick lines, some are bigger than others, etc) but they are always there. When she reads a book she says she can see through the spots to see the words but the spots are always there. When she is outside in the sun she says they get worse. She has been through numerous tests with her pediatrician as well as a pediatric ophthalmologist who said everything was normal with her eyes/retinas, etc. He also said that he has had a few patients previously complain of this but he didn't know what the cause was or what to do about it. She doesn't have regular headaches, dizziness, etc and doesn't typically complain about them but they do irritate her. Recently she has started to complain of what she is calling a "grey wave" and has described this as a big grey blob that comes from the side and is bigger than the other colored spots she normally sees.  She says it is dark grey and she can still see through it and it only lasts for a short time but it is more bothersome than the other spots. I haven't been able to find anyone that has any thoughts on what could be the issue. There have been a few online posts that suggest she might have migraines without the headache, or could also have an electrolyte imbalance, but I would really like to know if someone has dealt with this before and what direction I should go in to find help for her.  Thank you.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

The spots (scotoma) associated with migraine are not 'always there"    Her symptoms do not suggest any certain disease. You are dong the right thing by having her checked regularly by a pediatric ophthalmologist, or retina specialist.  Not to reflect on your daughter but some pediatric patients have been known to use vague eye symptoms as a way of getting attention or manipulating parents. Since the problem has been going on several years without progression to vision loss it not likely a threat to vision.

[jennyrain]

I did consider that it was for attention at first but I don't think that's the case because she rarely mentions it. Initially she only told her older brother about it and he came to me saying he didn't believe her and I didn't even know what he was talking about. Since that initial Dr's appointment (about a year ago) I do ask her periodically if they are still there and she says yes but doesn't go on and on about it - she just says they are annoying and wishes she could just see without them.  She just came to me the other day and explained the new "grey wave" that she was experiencing because it was different and scared her a little.  Do you think I should go to a different ophthalmologist?  What about a neurologist? Thanks again.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS, FAAO]

If you are going to get a second opinion on this unusal problem I would suggest you see a neuro-ophthalmologist. Most major cities and universities have one. You could even ask your present ophthalmologist for a referal.