Amblyopia or "lazy eye" is weak vision or vision loss in one eye that cannot be fully corrected with lenses.

It usually develops in children before age eight and is best treated if caught early. It becomes more difficult to treat amblyopia after age eight and if untreated it can lead to total blindness in the affected eye.  However, new studies on the  neuroplasticity of the brain hold out hope for older people with amblyopia who have not been treated.  A recent study by the National Eye Institute concluded that patients as old as 17 may benefit from treatment.

Amblyopia involves the "wiring" of the nerve impulses from the eyes to the brain. Treatment typically includes Vision Therapy, eyeglasses and contact lenses, or a patch. Surgery alone is not sufficient. 

Amblyopia is rarely obvious to parents and teachers.  An eye doctor should be consulted to diagnose the condition.  If amblyopia is not caught and treated early, permanent vision loss may result.

Furthermore, patients must ensure that they are being treated not just to improve the acuity of the affected eye but also to improve their binocularity (both eyes working together).  Neglecting the latter may result in depth perception problems and difficulties reading.  A famous case of treatment that ignored binocularity (although for strabismus rather than amblyiopia) is that of Susan Barry who was unable to see in three dimensions until she was treated with vision therapy in her 40's.

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Amblyopia (lazy eye)

Vision Therapy appears to be more effective than patching alone.

A 1999 study published in the Journal of the American Optometric Association showed that amblyopes treated with vision therapy had better depth perception than patients treated with patching and glasses only.

A 2002 study published in the journal, Optometry, showed that only 50% of patients who had initial improvement following treatment maintained their improvement at a 1-2 year follow-up.  However, 100% of those patients who had vision therapy maintained their improvement after a 1-2 year follow-up.