• Heredity Advice March 19 - 10:56 pm
• Occular albinism June 15 - 10:17 am
• Genetics discussion 10/97 to 3/98 December 27 - 12:25 pm
• Nystagmus Sufferer PLEASE HELP!!!!!!!! June 10 - 04:45 pm
• Can you tell if a 12 week old baby has nystagmus? June 1 - 07:41 pm
• NYSTAGMUS July 19 - 05:48 pm

I have a friend with severe myopia, astigmatism, nystagmus and albanism. He has a daughter, and said she has the gene that could cause a male baby to inherit his problems. A few months back, on the Net I thought I saw something about tests that can be done to find out one's risk more clearly, but he hadn't heard of any. How can I get that information?

HI! Jan, I'm Nann Green the moderator of this discussion board. You'll have to pardon any mistakes I may make as this is my first try at being a moderator.

Disclaimer - I have degrees in physiology and have taken many genetics courses, but am not a geneticist.

First I might suggest that you and/or your friend visit the NOAH (national organization for albinism and hypopigmentation) at http://www.albinism.org. This website might have more useful information than I am able to provide.

The Nystagmus your friend has is probably due to the albinism. They are commonly linked. The myopia and astigmatism are also commonly linked to albinism. My son has ocular albinism (affecting his eyes only) and has nystagmus, astigmatism and hyperopia in addition to the OA.

We have 2 types of genes in our bodies - Autosomal genes and sex chromosome (X or Y)genes.

If your friend has the autosomal form of albisnim then he has 2 recessive genes for albinism, receiving one from each parent. He can pass on one of these to his daughter. The daughter has then a 50% chance of passing this on to any child. This child would have albinism only if the father also carried a recessive form of the albinism gene.

Some types of albinism (ocular albinism) are X-linked recessive meaning that the albinism gene is on the X chromosome. In this case the daughter would get the gene and be a "carrier". She would then have a 50% chance of passing this gene on to a son or daughter. If the son received the gene then he would probably exhibit albinism. If a daugher received the gene then she again would be a "carrier".

There is a doctor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX - Dr. Richard Lewis - who is doing genetic testing for X-linked ocular albinism. There are others who are doing research on albinism genes that I do not know of but will try to find out and post another message later.

My name is Anita and I am at my friend's house learning about the internet. I am looking at your site because I have two children that are albino. Thank you for making this site available. I am looking for a computer for our two children so that they can do homework. Does anyone know of any resources or funding help for this?

I have had my nystagmus sence birth , whitch was passed on to me from my mom.Something odd is that when I get really really mad,I have been told that my eyes quit jumping.There is another instance when they stop ,just a little more the opposite of being mad,BUT,that is another deal wee won/t mention now

My daughter of now 2,5 yrs old has CN. We had her examined when she was only a few months old, and her condition is being caused by Cone Dysfunction (only half of her cones are working). As a newborn she couldnot see further than 10 cm away; now she is 2,5 yrs old she has developed a much further sight. Looking closely at objects is the easiest for her, she has a nullpoint with her head a little aside when she has to concentrate hard on viewing something. The biggest problem is looking at a distance. The nystagmus also increases when she is nervous or in a strange environment. We think she is a moderate patient with CN, compared to all we have read until now from other patients.
I am looking for information on inheritance of her eye-condition. If so, what is known about it.
If not inheritable, could her condition be linked to the way she and her twinbrother (who has normal view and no nystagmus) were conceived: through I.V.F., or to diseases from the mother or to drugs taken in pregnancy.
Any answers or reactions very welcome to:
Marleen den Braber, The Netherlands
email: ldbraber@hetnet.nl

Please help! I have a 3 month old baby girl and two days ago after a very hot day I was alarmed to see her eyes ficking rapidly from side to side and then rolling upwards. Took her to two doctors who knew nothing. I know this is nystagmus, but she only seems to do this when I lay her down to change her nappy (going from vertical to horizontal position). Otherwise she is fine. Can anyone offer me some advice, please.
Mary B. (probe@mail.teksupport.net.au)

Hi! I'm the mom of two children, a daugher 3 without N and a son 24 mos with N.
I do not have N, but my mom and all her aunts do, as did her father.
I'm interested in this discussion because my sister and I are carriers of the N gene. We have five children between us, the boys have N, the girls do not.

HI! I am very interested in the heridity discussion. I do not have albinism, but I was born with nystagmus. I am very nearsighted, have astigmatism, and either have optic nerve hypoplasia or atropy (which is probably causing the nystagmus). There is no evidense of nystagmus in my family that I can find unless it is several generations back. I would like to know if this can be passed to my children or if it was just a fluke occurance. Where should I go for help?

Please, Anyone who reads this, if you know anything about these conditions I list below, will you please contact me at my email address: highjump_dg6@hotmail.com.

I am trying to find out what exactly is wrong with my eyes, and it is so hard to find out.

Esotropia
Exotropia
Amblyopia
Nystigmus
Hypertropia

Thank you!

Stephanie

I have a sixteen year old son with nystagmus. Does anyone have any suggestions about driving? his corrected vision is 20/40-20/60 in the opthamologist's office, and he has low depth perception.

Also, has anyone heard of higher rates of congenital nystagmus for the children of herbicide applicators? Or others exposed to 2,4, D?

My 13 year old daughter is nearsighted in a moving car, yet has 20-20 vision sitting in the doctor's chair. She was diagnosed with CN when she was 11. ("She had CN all along, it's just that noone noticed"!!!) Now, her nystagmus had gotten worse and her 8 year old brother has developed mild and subtle nystagmus. I don't know if her nystagmus is the same as your son's, but you might want to play "Who can read the sign first" and get a feel for how his vision is in a moving car. I had already told my children that they will not be driving until they are 17 or 18, because of the very high accident rate among 16 year olds.

My also questions: Can CN have an onset in later childhood? How bad does it get before it stabilizes? Does it stabilize? We're a few weeks away from getting into the pediatric opthamology clinic, where my questions MAY be answered, but these are the people who said my daughter's nystagmus had been there all along.

Re heredity: There's no nystagmus in either family, but we are assuming whatever is going on is a non-sex-linked recessive.

My 22 year old son has congenital bilateral gaze nystagmus. He has voluntary control of eye movement with slight head tilt. He has 20/20 vision, intact peripheral vision and excellent depth preception.
He drives a car, rides a motorcycle without any difficulty and he's an excellent downhill skier.
He would like to be a helicopter pilot, but has been told his nystagmus diagnosis is not compatible with that profession even though he has normal vision acuity and depth perception. Does anyone know of a physical or medical reason that would interfere with his ability to pilot a helicopter? He's been told "no" but there's no "why" answers.

Hi, I'm 16 and I've had nystagmus all my life. I had learned to deal with it for most of my life but it seems that in the past 2-3 years, its been getting worse. I've been reading more about it lately and I came across this information stating that nystagmus is a symptom of something bigger. I do not know of anything that this can be the result of so if you know, please tell me. I had thought that i was the only one with these "dancing eyes" and I am somewhat glad that I am no longer the only one. Thankyou
Amanda

Hi,I am 41 years old and born with horizontal and vertical nystagmus. Since december 1999 I also have the rotation nystagmus.( i felt dizzy at once, got a inflammation in both ears).Now I am still dizzy,with a sound in my ears,my left eye is turning clockwise and my right eye is turning anti-clockwise.I can not wear my glasses anymore and see 10% The diagnose of this nystagmus is neurologic.But at the hospital they can not find the cause.I am dizzy inside my head all day ( I feel movements behind my eyes and inside my ears) the world is standing still,with a small vibration.Please can somebody help me??????????
Dutch regards Lianne

I have a stepson that is Nystagmus Albinism as he gotten older his eye sight has worsened what I would like to know is there a doctor out there that could help my stepson vision to inprove?

Help. My son is 5 1/2 months and has yet to be diagnosed. His eyes bob vertically as described by others on this site. We have seen a pediatric neurologist and a pediatric opthamologist. We had an EEG and an MRI. Nobody seems to know what to call this. The first dr. said it was spasms nutans. The second said it was nystagmus. Neither said it was at all serious - nothing as described on this site. They said "he'll grow out of it."We are going to get a second opinion and also see a genetic specialist. Are we doing the right thing?