What Causes Lazy Eye (Amblyopia)?

Questions such as why lazy eye and how it passes are a matter of curiosity among people who encounter this condition for the first time. Lazy eye, also known as amblyopia, is a condition in which the vision of one eye does not develop properly. The quality of vision in the eye with lazy eye decreases over time and blurred vision problem occurs. In cases where the visual function does not develop properly during development, both eyes can be affected by this problem. Lazy eye can also occur with conditions such as strabismus and cause blurred vision. Lazy eye weakens depth perception, and where a squint is present the eyes do not move together. Early recognition of this condition makes treatment much easier. It can be treated with the use of glasses or lenses. However, in some cases surgery may be used. This condition, referred to as amblyopia in the medical dictionary, occurs when the ability to see in one or both eyes does not develop, for example because of strabismus, although there is no problem in the brain or eye health. This condition, which is frequently seen in the early stages of childhood, causes blurred vision. This condition, which extremely weakens the depth perception, makes it very difficult to determine whether an object is far away or close. Therefore, this is one of the main complaints of people with lazy eye. Squinting or closing of one eye is also a sign of this.

Causes of Lazy Eye

How lazy eye develops and what its causes are is frequently researched. It occurs with a condition that causes the nerves between the retina and the brain behind the eye to change, especially in childhood. Failure to use the nerves in the eye also causes lazy eye. Due to the lack of development of these nerves, one or both eyes remain weak. The eye that is weakened due to nerve underdevelopment sees much less. The signals it receives are also very few, and because of this situation, the weak eye loses its vision even more. The brain does not perceive the eye with poor eyesight and this weakens that eye even more. There are other conditions that cause lazy eye. These can be listed as follows:

• Cataract: Cataract is a disease that can occur both age-related and congenital. In congenital cataract, protein accumulates in the lens of the eye. This causes blurred vision and lazy eye. Early intervention is essential to prevent further vision loss.
• Strabismus: It is one of the common causes of lazy eye. It occurs when the muscles in the eyes do not work proportionally. This causes the eye to slide outwards or inwards.
• Low Eyelid: It is also known as ptosis in medical language. Vision is impaired due to sagging of the eyelid.
• Refractive Error: A large difference in prescription between the two eyes, or a high prescription in both (myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism), can stop the blurred eye from developing normal vision.
• Developmental Factors: Inadequacies in the development process and conditions such as premature birth can also cause lazy eye.

Symptoms of Lazy Eye

Symptoms of lazy eye manifest themselves in various ways. Reduced vision in one eye and loss of depth perception are the most common signs; a squint or a cataract is not a symptom but a possible cause. These symptoms may also indicate other diseases. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary to consult a doctor. Symptoms of lazy eye include the following in general:

• Distraction
• Inability to follow an object or moving object with the eye
• Headache
• Loss of vision in one or both eyes
• Blink reflex frequency
• Loss of depth perception
• Trembling of the eyes
• Constantly tilting the head to one side

Diagnosis of Lazy Eye

It is absolutely necessary to see an ophthalmologist for the diagnosis of lazy eye , which is known to occur in childhood . Doctors first analyse the eye structure and determine the ability to see. The eyes are checked for strabismus, slippage or other problems. On the other hand, it is important to check infants and children and detect this condition early. In infants and children, the diagnosis is made by methods such as following the object, closing one eye and following the other eye. In adults, this condition is detected by similar or the same methods and the treatment process is started.

Treatment of Lazy Eye

There are many methods for the treatment of lazy eye. With methods such as glasses, lenses, eye closure method, both vision is tried to increase and the development of the lazy eye is ensured. Early diagnosis is absolutely necessary to prevent further loss of vision. For this purpose, if the symptoms given above are encountered, you should definitely go to a doctor. Some methods applied in the treatment of lazy eye are as follows:

• Orthoptic treatments
• With the eye closure technique, the non-problematic eye is closed and the lazy eye is left open. In this way, the vision of the lazy eye is improved.
• Eye patches are also worn on the strong eye and the vision of the weak eye is improved.
• The eye is temporarily blurred with medicated eye drops. This allows the brain to focus more on the weaker eye and improve its vision.
• Wearing glasses also helps to improve vision. Thus, the brain supports both eyes.
• Lazy eye surgery is very rare. However, if there is a structural situation that cannot be solved, then surgery is applied.

Does Lazy Eye Leave Permanent Damage?

If lazy eye is not treated on time, it causes vision loss to increase in the weak eye in the future. This situation causes vision loss that cannot be prevented or treated. If there is any problem with vision, you should definitely see a doctor and undergo the necessary tests. Thus, lazy vision can be easily treated in the early stages.