[Spatial value of the fovea in young children]

After defining physiological fixation of the fovea and relating our knowledge of its normal development in the context of spatial perception, we have reviewed the pathological adaptations encountered in strabismus. Out of all the clinical examinations that are possible in very young children and which enable sensory disturbances to be revealed, the examination of fixation appears to be simple and dependable, sometimes well before the appreciation of the comparaison of visual acuity of the two eyes. Amblyopia can be suspected using this method in cases of poor foveal fixation when compared with the other eye, and it enables treatment to be instituted and controlled all the more efficiently since therapy in an early stage can lead to a rapid recovery and maintenance of normal development.