What is amblyopia?
Amblyopia, commonly known as lazy eye, is a condition where vision does not develop properly during early childhood.
After the age of seven to eight years, the development of the part of the child’s brain that processes vision is almost complete. If the brain has not received clear images from the weak eye prior to that, it would be difficult to improve vision in that eye after the visual part of the brain development is complete. The eye is then said to be “amblyopic” or “lazy”. If left untreated, visual impairment can become permanent.
What causes amblyopia?
The main causes of amblyopia are uncorrected high refractive error (astigmatism, hyperopia, myopia), large differences in refractive
power between the two eyes, and/or squint (strabismus). A minority are due to conditions that obstruct vision, such as droopy eyelids and childhood cataracts.
How do I know if my child has amblyopia?
Children with amblyopia often do not complain of poor vision, and the problem may only be detected when vision testing is done.
Occasionally, parents may notice a squint (where one eye appears to be misaligned), or a droopy upper eyelid in their children.
