Albinism is usually a matter of inheritance and its exterior characteristics concern the lack of pigmentation in the case of hair, skin and eyes. There are also other gene alterations related with this condition and some of them have to do with the fact that melanin is absent, being responsible for the pigmentation or coloring of the hair, skin and eyes. The absence of melanin is associated with some other affections – the low or none protection from the ultraviolet lights of the sun. Other problems that affect vision are related with lack of melanin.

Some eye conditions are related with albinism and may appear or develop in time. One of the visual problems that may be present together with albinism signs is the muscle imbalance of the eye, called strabismus. This affection has many other names – “crossed eye”, “lazy eye”, “wandering eye” and “heterotropia”. The problem of coordinating both eyes is also associated with an aesthetic aspect and may be also associated with the low self-esteem of the people that suffer from this eye condition.

Sensitivity to bright light and to the direct light of the sun is another associated problem with albinism. There is another related aspect that may appear in the case of people that suffer from albinism – either far-sightedness or near-sightedness. Some other abnormalities are to be mentioned among the albinism associated visual problems and these abnormalities concern the routing of the optic nerve to the brain. There are some difficulties in the connection process between the eyes and brain of the people that suffer from albinism. The nerves involved in this process seem to be different or abnormal; that is why so many other visual abnormalities are involved.

Albinism may be associated with astigmatism – a type of the image distortion. The essence of astigmatism may be expressed as a refractive error, as the refraction process is different from the case of the normal eye. The image may be distorted horizontally or vertically and the treatment may imply refractive surgery or special glasses or lenses. There are different types of astigmatism: corneal, lenticular, simple, compound and mixed, regular and irregular. Moreover, the regular astigmatism may be of three other categories: oblique, against-the-rule and with-the-rule.

Another visual affection may be associated with albinism and this is the case of the involuntary eye movement, also known as nystagmus. There are different types of nystagmus, taking into account the different types of movement the eye is making and the rhythm of this movement. There are two phases of this visual affection: a rapid one and a slow one. Besides, the physiological nystagmus may be induced, while the pathological nystagmus may be congenital. Nevertheless, alcohol and drug abuse may also induce pathological nystagmus for a short period of time. Specialists also speak about two types of nystagmus – vestibular nystagmus of two types: positional and spontaneous.

These associated with albinism visual problems may not necessarily appear, but in many cases the fact that the eyes of a person who suffers from albinism have not enough natural protection increases the risks of developing the mentioned visual problems. The sensitivity to bright light and to exposure to bright light may be explained by the fact that the light can also pass through the iris, not only through the pupil. That is why extreme care is recommended while exposing to the direct sunlight or other sources of bright light. In many cases hats and sunglasses may be of great help. Albinism may be defined by the fact that the nerve connections between the brain and the eyes are abnormal, aspect that has other consequences and complication.