Heredity in congenital esotropia

As an approach to the problem of familial tendency for congenital esotropia, four families were selected because of proband (index case) who had congenital esotropia. Available family members were evaluated for strabismus and other anomalies of vision. Several possible risk factors were evaluated and the presence of high accommodative convergence-to-accommodation ratio was remarkable. Increased prevalence of congenital esotropia was found among family members as compared to the general population, but with no consistent pattern of Mendelian (single gene) inheritance. These findings are consistent with but not proof of a multifactorial (polygenic and environmental interaction) model. The implication for practicing optometrists is that families with one member affected with congenital esotropia represent a group with increased risk for recurrence.