Dr. Grossman’s Blog

Image via dfcs.oregon.gov

Depth perception, the ability to see our 3D world, relies on the eyes’ ability to work as a perfect team.  In people with an eye imbalance or amblyopia, also known as lazy eye, one team member (one eye) is stronger than the other and depth perception becomes compromised.

A study published in Current Biology presents a new way to correct sensory eye dominance.  Researchers call it a “push-pull training method” that proved to improve depth perception in study participants.

When caught early, amblyopia (lazy eye) in children can be corrected through covering the stronger eye so that the weaker eye is forced to do the work of seeing.  This new method is focused on adults who do not respond as well to such strategies.  The researchers’ new approach involves making the two eyes compete to see an image but giving the weaker eye an advantage so that it learns how to win, so to speak.

Source: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/204763.php

For more on binocular conditions, visit our website.

Amblyopia or “lazy eye” can lead to vision loss in a person’s weaker eye if it goes untreated.  Luckily, if amblyopia is diagnosed and worked on before age seven, more than three quarters of children can achieve at least 23/30 vision.

Image by ugaldew

Because there are concerns that caregivers can miss the signs of amblyopia, experts are looking into a better way to diagnose the problem.

A program in Iowa sponsored by he University of Iowa and the Iowa Lions Clubs worked together over the last decade to screen almost 150,000 children using technology called the PhotoScreener.  According to the source of this story, MedicalNewsToday.com, this device “records the pattern of light reflected through each of the child’s pupils as the child’s eyes are photographed.”

The PhotoScreener is also helpful in finding such conditions as  unequal visual acuity between the two eyes (anisometropia), high nearsightedness, high farsightedness, astigmatism, and strabismus.

For more on ways that Vision Therapy can help amblyopia and other eye convergence problems, please visit our website.

Eye and Vision Milestones in Infants
Babies older than 3 months should be able to follow or “track” an object as it moves across their field of vision.  If your baby is unable to hold steady eye contact by this time or seems unable to see, let your pediatrician know. Eye-crossing is common in babies before 4 months of age, especially when they are eating.  Eyes that cross all the time or one eye that turns out is often indicative of a problem and should be brought to your doctor’s attention.

Vision Problems in Toddlers
Eye misalignment is called strabismus and is a reason to call the pediatrician right away.  Other vision problems include lazy eye or amblyopia, which has no warning signs and may not effect your child’s vision.

The following problems should prompt a conversation with a pediatrician or an eye professional for children of any age:

SOURCE: http://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditions/eyes/pages/Vison-Problems-in-Children.aspx

Researchers at Chinese University of Hong Kong and the International Eye Center of Shantou University have discovered that acupuncture can help children suffering from “lazy eye” or amblyopia.  The children received acupuncture on five points five days a week for 25 weeks.  The treatment provides a 40-60% chance of curing the condition that occurs when a healthy eye does not receive the correct signals from the brain.

For more on lazy eye and other binocular conditions, click here.

Source information

Amblyopia is a common childhood eye disorder in which the brain favors vision in one eye. Current treatment involves wearing a patch over the dominant eye in order to force the brain to use the other eye. Clinical trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Health have provided more concrete guidelines for wearing an eye patch: most can wear a patch for just two hours a day while the most severe cases require six hours of patch wearing (not full time as was once directed).

In the future, functional MRI technology is expected to help cure this neurologic disorder. Because recent recent research show that this condition may have genetic origins, future preventative therapies may be developed.

Source reference: National Institutes of Health