Amblyopia refers to a condition where vision in one or both eyes fails to develop normally during the critical period of visual development,
despite no specific abnormalities in the eyes themselves.
It typically occurs during the visual development period, usually before the age of 7 or 8.
Amblyopia is characterized by insufficient improvement in visual acuity even with corrective eyeglasses or contact lenses.
If not detected early, treatment can become very difficult in adulthood.
Therefore, early diagnosis and treatment are paramount.
Causes of Amblyopia
Amblyopia
If one eye is misaligned, the brain suppresses the image from that eye to avoid confusion.
This persistent suppression impairs the visual development of that eye,
leading to amblyopia.
Refractive Amblyopia
During the period of visual development,
(myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism) in the eye during the period of visual development are left uncorrected and untreated,preventing a clear image from forming
on the cornea and retina.
Amblyopia due to visual stimulus deprivation
This occurs when physical issues such as ptosis or corneal opacity
block the field of vision in one or both eyes, preventing light or images
from reaching the retina accurately.
Amblyopia Treatment
Wearing glasses or contact lenses
For refractive amblyopia, precise refraction testing is performed
to prescribe appropriate eyeglasses or contact lenses
that correct vision so a clear image is focused on the retina.
Surgical treatment
If the cause is a physical issue obstructing vision, such as congenital
cataracts or severe ptosis, early surgical intervention to remove the
cause is necessary for vision development to be possible.
Shade Therapy
By covering the good eye with an eye patch,
the amblyopic eye is forced to work,
promoting visual development.
Treatment should begin and be intensively focused on before the age of 7 to 8, when visual development is completed, and no later than age 9.
It depends on the cause. While some amblyopia can be corrected with glasses alone, most cases require additional treatment.
While some mild cases of amblyopia can be corrected simply by wearing glasses, if corrected vision does not improve even with glasses, additional active treatments such as occlusion therapy must be pursued concurrently.
If performed correctly under the guidance of a specialist, it is extremely rare for vision in the healthy eye to be permanently impaired.
Treatment for amblyopia in the general sense (restoration of visual acuity) is highly limited in effectiveness for adults whose visual development period has ended.
Even if adults undergo vision correction surgeries like LASIK or LASEK, these procedures alter the eye's refraction rather than improving the brain's visual function.
Therefore, it is difficult for vision to improve beyond the best-corrected visual acuity (the maximum vision achievable with glasses) of an amblyopic eye.
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