ABSTRACT
Antonio was born to a thirty-four-year-old mother, her first and very much wanted baby. Mrs. Q.'s husband accompanied her through her labor, and they were delighted when she delivered a healthy, vigorous boy. He was alert as they examined him on the delivery table. When his eyes widened as he followed their faces, his mother noted a cloud over the left pupil. This immediately frightened her. When the pediatrician examined the baby in her room, he quickly reassured her that it was probably a congenital cataract which could be removed in the future by an operation. At the time, she seemed to accept this, but later on each office visit, she asked the doctor to reiterate his opinion. Since by then the cataract had been confirmed by an ophthalmologist, it was easy to do so. Mrs. Q., however, became a bit teary whenever she discussed this "minor" defect. She blamed herself openly and questioned everything she had done during her pregnancy. Had she eaten something wrong? Could she have had an infection no one knew about? Was it her genes or her husband's—she knew of no blindness or serious eye problems? Could this be related to her own nearsightedness?
