Amblyopia

What?

Amblyopia, also known as "lazy eye," is a condition in which one eye has reduced vision. Lack of brain stimulation from the weaker eye causes the strong eye to become dominant. The amblyopic eye is suppressed and may even become blind.

Why?

Amblyopia may be caused by:

• misaligned or crossed eyes
• a difference in visual acuity between the two eyes (a difference of at least one line on a Snellen Visual Acuity Chart)
• Less commonly, amblyopia develops when one eye is more nearsighted, farsighted, or astigmatic, or suffers from cataract.

What are its symptoms?

Normal Vision	Lazy eye Vision

• frequent squinting or closing one eye to see
• poor visual acuity
• eyestrain
• headaches
• eyes do not move together or fix on the same point
• crying or complaining of an eye when one eye is covered
• cloudiness in the pupil (cataract)
• an upper eyelid that droops and covers most of the eye (ptosis).