Lazy Eye (amblyopia)

What is a lazy eye?

A lazy eye is the most common condition causing poor vision in children. It is caused by impaired development of vision in children less than 7 - 8 years of age. If seen and treated early, almost all of those children suffering from this condition will regain normal vision.

We recommend you have your child checked if you have any concerns in this regard as soon as possible

What causes a lazy eye?

The most common causes for lazy eye are focus errors in the eye, such as long-sightedness, focus difference between two eyes and rarely near-sightedness.

The next most common cause of lazy eye is a squint. This can present as ‘cross eye’, or the outward turning of an eye. Other causes include congenital cataract or drooping eyelids.

How is a lazy eye treated?

The correct treatment depends on the exact cause of the condition, and this can only be identified after a thorough examination.

For many children, simply correcting their eye focus with the aid of glasses will improve their vision. Some will need to use patching of the good eye to make the poor sighted eye work harder and by doing so the vision in this eye will be improved. There are other options for treating lazy eye and Eye Doctors Paediatric specialist will guide you and your child through the entire process of treatment based on your child’s specific condition.

Squints in children

What causes a squint?

A squint is caused by the misalignment of the eyes. It can be cross- eyed (convergent) or an outward turning of the eye (divergent). One eye can also be higher than the other eye, or lower than the other eye. About half of those children with cross-eye’s are due to uncorrected long-sightedness.

How are squints treated?

For some children wearing appropriate glasses will not only improve their vision but also correct their crossed eyes. For other children with this condition special eye muscle surgery to correct their squint is required. This is especially likely when the crossed eyes occurred within the first six months of age and when there is a constant outward turning of the eye. Early surgery with appropriate alignment of two eyes can restore 3D vision in some children.

What happens if a squint suddenly develops?

The sudden onset of a squint requires urgent investigation, as sometimes a child with life threatening disease, eg. tumours in the eye or in the brain, can first present with a squint.

Need more information?

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