What Is Amblyopia?

Amblyopia, which is commonly referred to as lazy eye, refers to the loss of the ability to see properly through one eye. The condition develops because of a breakdown between the brain and the eye coordination. The brain can’t recognize the images from one eye, which then affects your vision. Over time, your brain relies fully on the complete image from one eye. As the condition worsens, children with amblyopia suffer from a decrease in visual acuity, which can significantly affect learning during childhood.

Amblyopia starts in childhood, which is a critical phase of visual development. Lazy eye is one of the most common causes of vision loss among children. But early diagnosis and treatment can correct the eye disorder and prevent permanent vision problems. Through regular vision screening of your children, a top eye doctor detects the early signs, providing enough time to start early treatment.

Vision problems in early childhood are easy to miss without regular eye checkups. The experienced eye specialists at New York eye surgery center of Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York (VRMNY) use the latest diagnostic imaging and vision tests to reach an accurate diagnosis. In an individualized treatment plan, your eye doctor chooses between amblyopia surgery, an in-office procedure and medications to correct this and other eye disorders.

What Are the Indicators of Amblyopia?

As a parent, your child’s health is your responsibility, but it’s not always easy to get it right. While regular eye checkups catch amblyopia at an early age, there are some indicators you can watch for. If you spot these symptoms early enough, you can take your child to one of VRMNY’s offices in Manhattan, Brooklyn or Westchester to begin the most effective amblyopia treatment. Some indicators of lazy eye include:

• Drifting eye
• Persistent tilting of the head
• Bumping into objects
• Squinting or repeatedly closing one eye
• Double vision
• Misaligned eyes
• Difficulty seeing things clearly
• Poor depth perception

During the diagnosis phase, your eye doctor may find an abnormal result from the vision tests. These signs during early childhood indicate your child may be suffering from a lazy eye. When you visit a VRMNY facility, you get access to a friendly eye specialist who’s also one of the best doctors in the field. These NY ophthalmologists know how to comfort you child during the treatment process.

What Causes Amblyopia?

Amblyopia develops in early childhood because of changes in the nerve pathways that transmit messages between the retina and the brain. Doctors haven’t identified a definitive reason for the breakdown, but some conditions increase the risk of this eye disorder. These risk factors include:

• Refractive error. A refractive error in the eye alters the focus of light onto the retina, causing blurred vision. Some refractive errors that can lead to lazy eye disorder include nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism.
• Trauma. Eye injuries in one eye can affect the eye’s structure and development. The injury impedes the eye’s ability to send correct messages to the brain.
• Eye surgery complications. Eye surgery in children and adults may cause changes in the eye that lead to amblyopia.
• Deprivation amblyopia. This is an eye condition in which cataracts or other physical obstructions cause visual problems in a child’s eye. Differences in the levels of vision in a child’s eye can eventually cause amblyopia. The disorder requires urgent treatment to avoid long-term eye damage.
• A family history of lazy eye. If children come from a family with a history of lazy eye, they’re at a higher risk of developing the eye disorder themselves.
• Premature birth. Premature birth interrupts full development of the eye, causing retinopathy of prematurity (ROP). Amblyopia is among the complications associated with ROP.
• Developmental disabilities. Many children with developmental disabilities are at risk of developing amblyopia.

If your child falls under these risk categories, stay on the lookout for any signs of amblyopia. Your eye doctor at VRMNY may prescribe eye surgery for lazy eye, which is a long-term solution. Lazy eye surgery for adults can also resolve vision problems uncorrected in early childhood.

What’s the Treatment for Amblyopia?

The treatment for amblyopia varies, depending on the diagnosis. A lazy eye surgery doctor has various treatment options for lazy eye. Effective treatment is most successful before children turn seven years old. Appropriate treatments may include:

• Use of an eye patch. An eye patch stimulates the weaker eye and sometimes corrects the vision problem.
• Eyeglasses or contact lenses. If you’ve got a refractive error, an eye doctor can prescribe eyeglasses or contact lenses to correct the error and prevent amblyopia from worsening.
• Atropine eye drops. These eye drops blur vision in the normal eye temporarily. The blurred vision encourages the use of the weaker eye to improve its vision. These eye drops are an alternative to an eye patch.
• Eye surgery for lazy eye. If your doctor has tried non-surgical treatment without success, lazy eye fix surgery is an option. Surgery to straighten lazy eye may work best in combination with other treatments.

Your NYC ophthalmologist chooses the best treatment for amblyopia based on the diagnosis. The eye doctors at VRMNY use specialized equipment and technologies developed after many years of research. The doctors have developed some of the most effective eye treatment procedures through extensive research and collaboration. Contact the best retina specialist at Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York at any of their three locations today and enjoy the most effective eye treatment for you and your children.