Discovered-Amblyopia (also called lazy eye) is a type of poor vision that usually happens in just 1 eye but less commonly in both eyes.

Amblyopia

Amblyopia is the medical term for "lazy eye," which refers to a childhood condition where vision in one eye fails to develop properly. This usually affects the child's ability to see using the weaker eye, meaning they rely on their stronger eye.

Amblyopia

Some examples of physical eye problems that can cause slow eye growth include:

A squint or strabismus, is where the weak eye turns upwards, outwards, downwards, or in the direction the normal eye faces.

One eye may become cloudy due to the development of a cataract.

An eyelid drooping and partially covering the eye. This is called ptosis.

Types of amblyopia

There are several forms of amblyopia and all of them result in reduced vision in the affected eye. {The three types of amblyopia are described below}.

Strabismic amblyopia

{In this form of amblyopia, a squint develops due to a mismatch between the muscles that support eye position. The brain effectively "ignores" the eye that is not straight, while the brain relies on images generated by the stronger eye.} Treatment methods include eye exercises to try and retrain the child's weak eye muscles and covering the "good" eye with an eye patch to encourage the use of the "bad" eye.

Refractive or anisometropic amblyopia

This refers to when one eye has a greater refractive error than the other. {The brain "turns off" the more far-sighted eye and instead relies on the eye that provides a clearer image.} However, the weak eye remains straight, meaning the problem may not be noticed by parents or GPs. Refractive (amblyopia} may not be identified until the child has had a vision test. {This condition can be treated with corrective glasses or contact lenses.}

Deprivation or obstruction of amblyopia

This refers to when one eye is "lost" of vision due to an obstruction such as a cataract. The ocular media becomes opaque, preventing visual information from reaching the retina and then the brain. This form of (amblyopia) can affect one or both eyes and needs to be caught early to prevent vision loss at the child's age.