Amblyopia also known as lazy eye is a medical condition that affects vision due to abnormal visual development early in life. It is one of the common problems in babies and young children. If not treated properly, the lazy eye can cause permanent damage to the eyesight even resulting in partial or complete blindness.
Here’s what experts have to say about this eye condition and its causes.
What are the symptoms of lazy eye or Amblyopia?
It is utterly necessary to monitor a child’s vision in the early stages of their lives. There are many symptoms that occur before a child develops a lazy eye and many of them go unnoticed easily. According to Cleveland Clinic, squinting, shutting an eye, head tilting, droopy eyelid, and eyes that wander inward or outward are some of the symptoms that can hint a child has Amblyopia
What are the causes of lazy eye or Amblyopia?
There are certain conditions that may also lead to amblyopia including Refractive errors, the condition affects how light passes through one’s eyes. It could happen due to myopia – a condition where the child finds it difficult to see far away objects, hyperopia – trouble seeing objects that are close, or Astigmatism – a curved cornea.
Sometimes structural problems including cataracts, scars on the cornea, and even crossed eyes make it difficult for the brain to perceive information from both eyes. This causes excessive pressure on one eye leading to amblyopia.
In a recent interaction with HT Lifestyle, Consultant and Eye Surgeon, Dr. Priyanka Singh stated, “Any factor that hinders the passing of light rays to the eyes and to the brain will cause amblyopia.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Sowmya, Consultant at Banglore’s Sankara Eye Hospital added, “Refractive errors are one of the common causes of the lazy eye especially when there is a difference in powers of the two eyes. Children with refractive errors in one eye usually do not have any complaints as they manage comfortably with the other eye and that leads to late recognition and lazy eye to have set in by then.”
What is the treatment for lazy eye?
Dr. Priyanka Singh advised that neglecting a lazy eye can lead to a loss of depth perception. However, the younger the child, the better the response to treatment.
The expert said that correcting refractive errors using glasses, involving visual therapy in a child’s activity, and surgical correction of structural errors like corneal opacity, and squint are some of the ways through which Amblyopia can somewhat be treated. It is important to seek professional advice as soon as the symptoms occur.
(Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in the articles are sourced from various reports, the website doesn’t guarantee 100% accuracy of the facts presented.)
