Lazy eye treatment for adults

LAZY EYE TREATMENT


Patching For Lazy Eye Treatment can now be avoided

About 4% of children &
between 1-5% of the adult
population is affected by this visual impairment

eye patching

Overcoming Amblyopia or the Lazy Eye

Amblyopia, commonly known as ‘Lazy eye’, is a vision-related disorder that affects young children. And you can get this condition treated using our Amblyopia therapy software!

Let's Understand Amblyopia

In some children, only one of the two eyes focuses properly. This is a vision problem called lazy eyes (the medical term for this is Amblyopia). It is caused when the two eyes send different images to the brain. For example, it may happen if one of the eyes is more nearsighted, farsighted, or has more astigmatism (refractive error) than the other, or if the child has a squint. The brain then primarily processes the information coming from the better eye, ignoring the other. If unnoticed or untreated, it can continue to affect in later years. It is estimated that about 4% of children and between 1-5% of the adult population is affected by this visual impairment.

amblyopia

To understand this condition better, let us see how we actually see things.

Understanding Binocular Vision

Vision develops in the first few years of life as the brain starts interpreting visual signals coming from the eyes. What we ‘see’ results from signals sent from the eyes to the brain. Usually, the brain receives signals from both (bi) eyes (ocular) simultaneously. However, due to the placement of the eyes, the visual information collected by each eye differs slightly. If all is well, the brain can use these differences, coordinate eye movements and judge distances so that a wholesome meaningful 3D visual is created, and that is what we ‘see.’

What Causes Amblyopia/Lazy Eye? Does Amblyopia Lazy Eye treatment surgery exist?

A lazy eye may be an outcome of abnormal visual experiences in early life.

The eyes, visual pathways, and brain centres are constantly developing and maturing in the first few years of life. Occasionally, when one of the eyes does not function correctly, the brain tends to rely on the visual impulses coming from the stronger eye. If left untreated, the stronger eye continues to develop further, and the vision from the weaker eye can worsen. This visual imbalance is known as Amblyopia.

Certain abnormalities in the eyes during the growing years and/or later life can cause an eye to develop a poor vision and result in Amblyopia, such as:

Refractive Errors and Anisometropia

Refractive error in an eye simply means that the eye cannot focus correctly. Three types of refractive errors are near-sightedness, far-sightedness, or astigmatism. When uncorrected, refractive errors can strain the eye muscles, which have to work harder to achieve a focussed vision.

In some cases, both eyes have different magnitudes of refractive errors  medically known as ‘Anisometropia.’ One of the eyes may have a significantly poorer vision than the other. When this happens, the brain tends to rely more on sharp visual impulses from the normal eye and ignore the visual impulses from the weaker eye.

Muscle Imbalance or Strabismus

Our eyes have a set of muscles that help with eye movements. A weakness in any eye muscle will lead to abnormalities in the movement, such as turning inwards or outwards or having uncoordinated movements. This condition is called “Squint” or  Strabismus”. The brain tends to ignore the hazy visual images coming from the affected eye which is non-aligned. This eye then becomes a “Lazy eye.

Cataracts

Cataract means a cloudy lens. The cloudy lens prevents the rays of light from reaching the retina and is responsible for poor vision. A child may be born with a Cataract ( Congenital Cataract) or may develop in infancy ( developmental cataract). The only treatment for cataracts is early surgical removal. A long-standing cataract interferes with the development of visual function in the brain leading to Amblyopia or Lazy eye.

What Are The Symptoms of Amblyopia/Lazy Eye?

Amblyopia starts in childhood and may continue to persist in adulthood as well.

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Symptoms in Children

When a child develops a lazy eye, parents may observe that their child faces difficulty in focusing on objects, or they squint or shut one of the eyes to view the objects or surroundings clearly. Often, the child’s eyes may appear to turn inward, outward, and they may not work together in coordination.

 

Older children may also complain of poor perception of depth and an inability to view things clearly from a distance, such as writing on the classroom board. It affects their performance in school, sports and social behaviour.

 

When children develop such symptoms, It is important to consult a paediatric ophthalmologist as soon as possible to enable early treatment. Read more about Lazy Eye Treatment in Kids.

Symptoms in Adults

If a child with lazy eyes does not receive early treatment, the condition may worsen and persist in adulthood. 

The common complaints of adults having lazy eyes are:

  • Blurred or double vision
  • Uncoordinated eye movements
  • Poor depth perception
  • Squinting or closing one eye to view better
 
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Childhood Amblyopia Adult Amblyopia
● The child may be seen squinting or shutting one eye.
● Parents may be able to see uncoordinated eye movements in their child.
● The child may complain of inability to view the classroom board clearly.
● Blurred or double vision
● Poor depth perception
● Increased complaints of eye strain.

Amblyopia Therapy Software - How is Amblyopia/Lazy Eye Treated?

If left untreated, a lazy eye may worsen and lead to permanent visual impairment. Therefore, the goal of treatment is to improve vision in the lazy eye as early as possible and thereby optimize binocular vision.

The traditional lazy eye treatment approaches to treat the eye include:

Glasses

Glasses for correcting refractive errors

Eye-Glasses

amblyopia image

Patching

Patching is the most commonly advised treatment for lazy eyes in children. In this, a small eye patch is applied to the normal eye in an attempt to obscure its vision for a few hours daily. This way, the brain is trained to recognize the visual impulses coming from the weaker eye.

Penalization using Eye Drops

Eye drops are instilled into the normal eye and cause a temporary blurring of vision in the normal eye. This prompts the brain to turn towards visual impulses coming from the weaker or lazy eye. The effect is similar to patching.

eye patching

However, the success of these approaches depends on how regularly the child is in applying the patches/eye drops. Most children do not like this kind of patching and tend to resist it. Very often, parents do not apply the patch to avoid social stigma. Compliance with patching is very low

Patching or penalization can also lead to visual problems in the normal eye. Patching has limitations of age and does not help in correcting the adult lazy eye.

Limitations with Patching/Penalisation

  • Lesser success rates and higher incidence of residual visual deficit.
  • Prolonged lazy eye treatment over many years is essential for optimal results.
  • Monocular lazy eye treatment – treats one eye only.
  • Chances of visual disturbances occurring in the stronger eye.
  • Possibility of relapse once patching is discontinued.
  • Discomfort to the eyes and the child due to eye-drop installation or patching.
  • Patching may cause social anxiety in older children.
  • Non-compliance to patching due to peer pressure.
  • Time is of the essence, patching is not helpful unless started at an early age (<9years).
  • Not useful to treat Lazy Eye in adults.

Surgery

Surgery is recommended if there is a presence of a Cataract or Squint ( Strabismus)

 

While it is true that for treating the Lazy eye, time is of the essence, and most treatments are directed towards children, there are newer  lazy eye treatment technologies available that can be used to improve eyesight in adults and the elderly population as well.

"It is a myth that lazy eyes can be treated only in early childhood. Adults too can overcome their lazy eyes with recent advances in technology that helps achieve perfect vision."

Dichoptic Eye Treatments

Treatment for eyes using dichoptic technology is an emerging and highly effective approach for correcting Lazy eyes and improving vision. Dichoptic eye treatments work by offering simultaneous and separate visual stimuli to both eyes. In simpler terms, depending on the impairment, both eyes are presented with different stimuli simultaneously, which helps enhance the contrast difference perceived by both eyes. This can help achieve a balance between the normal eye and the lazy eye.

Dichoptic technology can help improve vision in children as well as adults.

dichoptic eye treatments

Bynocs AmblyGo Therapy For Childhood and Adult Amblyopia/Lazy Eye - The Ultimate Amblyopia Therapy Software

A new age, revolutionary technology has been developed to overcome Amblyopia or lazy eye in both children and adults.

How Does Bynocs AmblyGo Work?

In severe cases such as cataracts, immediate surgery is essential to prevent loss of vision. Surgery may also be performed for strabismus (muscle weakness of the eyes) or to improve the refractive error.
  • A detailed history is taken, and a thorough eye examination is performed by the optometrist.
  • The eye condition is evaluated using a computerized diagnostic test on the patented Bynocs software.
  • Individual treatment plans are formulated after consultation with the ophthalmologist.
  • The Bynocs technology helps the brain to appreciate the images from the lazy eye, using a gaming interface and specialized eyewear. These exercises are targeted at the visual centers of the brain.
  • The interactive gaming interface makes the sessions fun to attend for children as well as adults.
  • Sessions last for 30 minutes each day, and it is recommended to attend the sessions for five days a week.

With Bynocs AmblyGo, patients have experienced 80-90% improvement in their visual symptoms within just six weeks!

Bynocs AmblyGo: Advanced Yet Easy

Bynocs Ambly-Go is a simple and engaging eye treatment program that can be performed with minimal equipment. The initial evaluation can be done at any eye clinic enrolled with  Bynocs. The lazy eye treatment sessions can be undertaken either at the eye clinic or in the comfort of one’s home.

 

The only equipment needed to train on the patented Bynocs Ambly-Go is a computer with a stable internet connection and specialized Anaglyph glasses provided by Bynocs. After that, the treatment sessions are carried out under optometrist guidance, available on a video call.

 

Lazy eye or the amblyopic eye is treatable and reversible. Newer treatment technologies like dichoptic eye treatment offer excellent vision improvements even in adults.

 

Contact your eye-care practitioner and regain control of your eyesight.

 

Treat your Lazy Eye condition with the latest innovative Amblyopia therapy software out there.

References

Blair K, Cibis G, Gulani AC. Amblyopia. [Updated 2020 Dec 19]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing;

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