A lazy eye is a childhood condition where the vision in one eye doesn’t develop properly.
Causes for lazy eye in children
Strabismus
The most common cause of lazy eye is an imbalance in the muscles that position the eyes. This imbalance can cause the eyes to cross in or turn out, and prevents them from tracking together in a coordinated way.
Anisometropia
A significant difference between the prescriptions in each eye. Often due to farsightedness but sometimes to nearsightedness or an imperfection on the surface of the eye called astigmatism, can result in lazy eye.
Symtoms for lazy eye in children
Head tilting
Eyes that appear to not work together
An eye that wanders inward or outward
Squinting or shutting an eye
Abnormal results of vision screening tests
Poor depth perception
Treatment for lazy eye
Early detection and treatment offer the best outcome. If not detected and treated early in life, Lazy eye can cause a permanent loss of vision with associated loss of stereopsis. Better vision screenings are needed for young children.
Early treatment of lazy eye is simple, drops, vision therapy, eye glasses or eye patching. Many scientific studies on neuroplasticity of the brain in adults are now showing that therapies can improve the vision in lazy eye conditions in older children and adults.