Amblyopia
Amblyopia, also known as lazy eye, occurs when central vision does
not develop properly in one eye, leading to poor, unclear vision. Although
the eye with amblyopia has the capability to see, the brain elects to
see through the stronger eye rather than the blurry eye, causing functional
blindness in the affected eye. Amblyopia usually affects one eye, but
may occur in both.
Roughly 2 percent of the population suffers from amblyopia, and the
condition causes more loss of vision in patients under 45 than all other
eye diseases or injuries combined. Although amblyopia usually develops
before age seven, it can be occur at any age as a result of trauma to
the eye or a strong, uncorrected refractive error, such as nearsightedness
or farsightedness. A condition called strabismus, during which misaligned
eyes look at two different points in space at the same time, thus sending
two different images to the brain, also can result in amblyopia. Rarely,
amblyopia can be caused by a defect in the lens, such as a cataract.
Symptoms of amblyopia are often subtle, and children affected by the
condition often don't know they have it. Some noticeable symptoms include
eyes that do not move in the same direction or fix on the same point,
discomfort when the eye is covered, squinting or tilting the head to
focus on something, or a droopy upper eyelid.
Early treatment of amblyopia is vital for vision improvement. It is never
too early to have a child's eyes examined. Doing so during the early stages
of vision development could prevent amblyobia from completely destroying
the child's vision.
For more information on LASIK for amblyopia, please contact us or read
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