Amblyopia

-Amblyopia also known as “lazy eye” is described as reduced vision in one eye compared to the other.   According to the National Institute of Health, amblyopia is the most common cause of visual impairment among children. The scary part of amblyopia is that children do not know what normal vision is. A child with amblyopia thinks their vision is normal and therefore their parents think nothing is wrong with their child’s vision. With one eye seeing well it is hard for anyone other than an eye doctor to catch. Therefore, here at our vision center we recommend annual eye exams for children starting at 6 months of age.

A “lazy eye” is not lazy at all. With amblyopia the eye itself is healthy, but the brain has chosen to ignore the eye. With the brain relying on just one eye people with amblyopia are more likely to have difficulty with depth perception, reading, and visual acuity.  

Amblyopia can occur due to a few conditions. It most commonly develops when a child has significant differences in prescriptions between the two eyes. With one eye having a large prescription the brain chooses to ignore the blurry vision and only use one eye. The next most common cause of amblyopia is strabismus or crossed eyes. When eyes are not aligned then the brain would see two images, rather than seeing two images the brain will again decide to ignore an eye. The least common but most serious cause is due to obstruction of vision in early childhood. Obstruction can be caused by a congenital cataract, droopy eye lid or by patching and eye. Again, in this case one eye does not see a clear image so they brain begins to ignore that eye.