Lazy eye is a condition where the eyes do not develop properly; it is also called amblyopia. It is majorly found in children, and if not detected early, it will be carried into adulthood. It can get worse over time if not detected early or if neglected without proper treatment.
Routine optical checks are an effective way to detect lazy eyes. During routine checks, you will be asked to identify letters, numbers, and shapes on a chart, a light will also be passed on each eye, and a magnifying glass will be used to view the eyes.
The doctor will check out certain things like how clear your vision is, the strength of the muscles in your iris, your eye focus, a difference in images between your eyes. You can check here https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/health/health-advice/a563114/eye-symptoms-optician/ for more on the benefits of regular visits to the optician.
What Causes Lazy Eyes?
Lazy eyes are not easily detected, as children don’t know that seeing with one eye clearly while the other eye is blurry is not normal. It doesn’t show physical signs but may have different symptoms like visual fatigue, headaches, difficulty with depth perception, and sight strain. It becomes difficult for an adult to differentiate from afar or near distance.
Other causes of lazy optical can be an imbalance in the muscles that position the eye and causes it to turn out. It can either be inherited, can be due to injury, lack of vitamin A, glaucoma, which means high pressure in the iris that can lead to vision problems like astigmatism, corneal ulcer or scar, etc.
Symptoms to Watch Out For
- The eye with blurry vision no longer interprets images clearly.
- Having difficulty focusing with one eye.
- Double or blur vision.
- An eye turns.
- Poor depth perception; you will experience a significant difference between close objects and distant objects; you will find it difficult to differentiate them.
- Squinting or closing of one iris.
- Head tilting; you tilt your head to one particular side.
- Bumping into things on a particular side.
How to Treat Lazy Eyes
- Corrective eyeglasses or contact lenses can be used to correct this. Before being given a pair of corrective eyeglasses, you will have an eye test by an ophthalmologist or optometrist. The prescribed glasses should be worn all the time for better vision. If corrective eyeglasses don’t get results, patching therapy is recommended for children, while there are more options for lazy eyes treatment for adults.
- The use of eye patches is a very effective method that improves the condition of the eyes; it is usually worn on the stronger eye forcing the weak iris to function by blocking the clear sight with patches that will give a better vision to the soft iris. This is best used with corrective lenses.
- Iris drops are used once or two times a day. When dropped into the eye, it dilates the eye’s pupils causing them to blur; if used effectively as prescribed by the physician, it will give the best result.
- There are tools, games, computers, IPad games and videos, and other activities to fix a lazy sight. You have to use this with other treatments.
- Surgery is also an option but rare; it is used when lazy eyes are caused by squint, droopy eyelid, and cataracts. It helps direct the positioning of the muscles; in this regard, it takes about a few days to a week to heal. After the surgery, you may experience reddishness, minor pain, swelling of the iris, or pink or red tears pouring out from the iris.
- Vision therapy also helps improve an individual’s visual skills; it allows the development of binocular vision. This is the most effective treatment for lazy iris. You can find more here on maintaining good eyesight.
- Specific exercises like color in the lines, putting a pencil near your nose, making it a bit far away while focusing on it as it moves, solving puzzles while you have the patch on the stronger iris, etc.
Final Note
A lazy sight takes a while to heal; it can last for 6-9 months, depending on the stage of your condition. It takes longer to treat adults than in children, so it requires total commitment to getting the best results.
The treatment is not guaranteed, but it has a very high probability of improving vision as different individuals have different situations. For best results, ensure to visit a doctor to evaluate and check what is best for you.