Amblyopia is a vision condition that occurs in childhood. A lazy eye in children can develop between birth and the age of seven years old, when one eye is used less than the other. As a result, the affected eye is not able to build a strong link with the brain and will have reduced vision.

Symptoms

Amblyopia symptoms are not usually noticeable and young children are often unable to identify this vision condition. With young children, you can check their vision by covering one eye at a time. If they are relying on one eye more than the other, they may object to you covering this up. With older children, they may be able to tell you if they’re experiencing issues with their vision.

Hence Dr Ankita Patil recommend yearly vision check up for kids for early detection of lazy eye .

Cause –

lazy eye occurs when something causes the connection between the brain and the retina in the eye to not develop properly in a child’s early years. This can be a result of other conditions, such as a squint, obstacles in the vision field such as a droopy eyelid or cataract, or differences in prescription between the eyes.

Types of amblyopia

1)strabismic amblyopia, this is where an imbalance in the eye muscles results in them crossing and being unable to work in sync with one another.

2)Refractive amblyopia is where one eye has a significantly reduced sharpness of vision due to differences in prescriptions between the eyes.
3)deprivation amblyopia-caused by cataract(obstructing the light to enter ), and is typically the most severe of the amblyopia types, requiring urgent treatment to prevent a permanent loss of vision in the eye.

Treatment

1)eye patch (occlusion therapy)
Lazy eye exercises will be used to stimulate the affected eye. A patch may be placed over their good eye to encourage use of the weaker one.
2)correcting any underlying conditions
If short-sightedness, long-sightedness or astigmatism are contributing to a lazy eye, glasses should help to correct this issue. These should always be worn and the prescription should be checked regularly.

If a cataract is causing the issue, then lazy eye surgery may be required to remove the cataract and allow vision in the affected eye to develop properly

Note -Amblyopia treatment is most successful in young children under the age of 8 years old. Attempts to treat a lazy eye after this age may be more difficult and not be as effective. Therefore, Dr Ankita Patil emphasis to start treatment for a lazy eye as young as possible.

Young children do not always complain of their eye problems hence Dr Ankita Patil leading eye surgeon in Mumbai recommend annual check up for kids and to prevent amblyopia. Book an appointment now …….
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