Ophthalmology is a branch of medicine that deals with the anatomy, physiology, treatment and surgery of the visual pathways of the eye, including surrounding areas and the visual aspects of the brain. While ophthalmology is a well-defined discipline in medicine, there are sub-specializations that physicians can master. The most common sub-specializations include the following:
- Pediatric ophthalmology – for dealing with eye disorders of infants and young children including strabismus (misaligned eyes)
- Neuro-ophthalmology – deals with vision disorders caused by nervous system problems, specifically the brain
- Ophthalmic pathology – involves the diagnosis of neoplastic eye condition (also known as surgical pathology or surgical ophthalmology)
- Ocular oncology, a sub-specialization focused mainly on eye tumors and cancer of the eye or its parts
