Advice please

[cassy1989]

I was looking at a picture of my 3 1/2 year old son. The picture was taken when he was about 1.
In the picture one of his eyes is reflecting the light from the flash whilst the other eye isn't reflecting it if you see what I mean.
I have noticed this in another of his pictures but only one other, all the rest seem to be normal.
Now I'm freaking out thinking he has a brain tumour or something! I'm going to take him to the doctors on monday for their opinion. Deep down I think I'm being silly but has anyone else noticed this with photos?

[nomorepanic]

Surely it depends on the angle at which you take the photo?

He won't have a brain tumour 2.5 years on though would he?

[cassy1989]

Yeah I was thinking would it be the angle?
And I thought the same as you, by now I would have known about it?

[tiredOfOcd]

cassy1989

Put the pictures down. You CANNOT diagnose a brain tumor by the way light reflects in the eyes.

If you could, then they wouldn't have invented the CAT scan machine.

Light when it hits the eye, reflects off the outer surface of the eye and (I'd imagine) the inner surface.

BUT - there's no way to diagnose problems using the way light appears to reflect in a picture. If there was, then my eye dr wouldn't need a roomful of complex machines to tell me I need glasses.

About the only thing the reflection of light in the eyes in a picture will tell you is maybe the subject was sitting too close to the flash.

[cassy1989]

Hi TiredofOCD, thanks for replying.

I think this has made me worried because I read in a magazine once about a little boy who had the same thing and he had a brain tumour.

It's only been in two pictures and in one of the pictures I can see why one light isn't reflecting the flash and that is because there is uneven lighting in the room.

But in the second picture he is looking almost straight at the camera and still only one eye is reflecting the light and the other isn't.

I'm scared :(

[tiredOfOcd]

I'm scared :(


I know. I'm trying to give you facts that you can throw at your fear to crush it.



I think this has made me worried because I read in a magazine once about a little boy who had the same thing and he had a brain tumour.


Regardless of any magazine articles - the way light reflects in the eyes in a snapshot is NOT indicative of a brain tumor.

It isn't. It can't be. The connection between the eye and the brain is thru the optic nerve. You cannot "see" up the optic nerve into the brain.



But in the second picture he is looking almost straight at the camera and still only one eye is reflecting the light and the other isn't.


So its another light source. Maybe behind the person taking the picture. But its not a brain tumor.

And IT WAS 2 AND A HALF YEARS AGO. IF it was a brain tumor (which it is NOT) causing this when your son was 1 then you would have much further unarguable evidence of this. He'd be sick, his body wouldn't be working properly, he wouldn't be growing and developing like he has been.