Amblyopia
Amblyopia, also known as lazy eye, is a common childhood vision disorder that occurs when the brain doesn’t fully process information from one eye
What Is Lazy Eye?
Lazy eye occurs when the brain blocks out one eye’s image. So the one eye is working and the other is being ‘lazy’. A lazy eye is not the same as an eye turn and lazy eye can occur with or without the presence of an eye turn. This suppression of one eye’s image can be caused by a number of eye conditions.
What Are The Symptoms?
Symptoms include:
- Eyes that turn in or out
- Eyes that don’t seem to work together
- Difficulty judging depth
What Causes Lazy Eye?
Lazy eye, can have several causes, including:
Refractive errors
An unequal amount of refractive error between the eyes, such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism. The brain learns to use the better-seeing eye and ignores the other.
Strabismus
Also known as strabismic amblyopia, this is when the eyes are misaligned, causing the brain to ignore signals from the misaligned eye to avoid double vision.
Deprivation
Also known as deprivation amblyopia, this occurs when a structural problem blocks light from entering the eye, such as a cataract, droopy eyelid, or corneal scar.
Premature birth
Babies born prematurely or with low birth weight are more likely to develop amblyopia.
Developmental delays
Children with developmental delays or disorders are at a higher risk.
Family history
If someone else in your family had amblyopia, your child may be more likely to have it as well.
What Are The Different Types Of Lazy Eye?
- Strabismic amblyopia: The most common type of amblyopia, this occurs when the brain ignores a misaligned eye, causing the child to use only the straight eye.
- Refractive amblyopia: This occurs when one eye has a significant refractive error, such as needing glasses, but doesn’t wear them early in life.
- Deprivational amblyopia: This occurs when something prevents light from entering the eye, such as a cataract, ptosis, or corneal scar.
- Anisometropic amblyopia: This occurs when there’s a difference in visual acuity between the eyes.
- Ametropic amblyopia: This occurs when there’s a bilateral, symmetric high refractive error that results in blurred vision in both eyes.
- Combined strabismic and anisometropic amblyopia: This occurs when there’s eye misalignment and refractive error.
How Is It Treated?
Lazy eye, is treated by forcing the weaker eye to work more, which improves vision in that eye. Treatments include:
Eye patch
Place a patch over the stronger eye to force the brain to use the weaker eye. The amount of time needed to wear the patch varies by child, but it’s usually a few hours a day for several months.
Atropine eye drops
Put a drop of atropine in the stronger eye to temporarily blur vision. This treatment is similar to the eye patch, but it can cause light sensitivity and make it hard to see nearby objects.
Corrective lenses
Glasses or contact lenses can correct vision problems that cause lazy eye, such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism.
Bangerter filter
A special filter placed on the stronger eye’s lens to blur vision and stimulate the weaker eye.
Surgery
If the eyes cross or wander apart, surgery may be recommended to straighten them. Surgery may also be needed if the lazy eye is caused by cataracts or droopy eyelids.
Video games
Specially designed video games that are played while wearing goggles can help strengthen the weaker eye.
Lazy Eye can be treated in both children and adults. The vision skill that needs to be retrained is binocular vision, which enables the brain to combine images from both eyes into one single image.