Amblyopia

It is a functional condition that interferes with focusing usually occurring in childhood. It is most often a result of strabismus, high refractive error or anisometropia (higher dioptre difference between the two eyes). Sight functions in children evolve up until the age of 6 to 8 years and any obstacle to normal functioning of the eye in childhood may cause the eye to become permanently weaker. In practice, this means that an amblyopic eye cannot, even with the help of the best corrective aids (glasses, contact lenses, intraocular lenses) reach sight sharpness such as a healthy eye. This also limits the possible effect of refractive surgery. Refractive surgery may eliminate dioptre error, however, unfortunately it cannot eliminate amblyopia.