Have you ever noticed someone’s eyes and thought, “they look funny!”. Did you then ask someone or that very person about it and received the explanation, “oh, it’s just lazy eye”? Well, lazy eye is a very real condition that affects between 2 to 3 percent of the general population, according to Prevent Blindness. And despite the name, lazy eye doesn’t happen because someone was “lazy”. In general, lazy eye happens when vision doesn’t develop properly. Most people are familiar with it happening in one eye, hence, lazy eye, but it can happen in both eyes.
Lazy eye can stem from four different types of problems. With the first type, one eye can be focused properly, but the other eye focuses up, down, or to the side instead of straight. When this happens, the person’s brain automatically attempts to correct the issue by only going with the images from the eye that is focused appropriately, with the unfortunate result that the other eye gets neglected, so to speak. This is called Strabismus.
Another issue that can occur is with refractive errors, this is the type that most people are familiar with because while most of the time it doesn’t develop into lazy eye, these are the issues that most people have. Refractive errors include things like, being nearsighted, farsighted, or astigmatism. Lazy eye is hard to diagnose in this case because it seems initially that the eyesight is fine, when really the “damaged” eye’s function has been turned off.
Cataracts in youth can also cause lazy eye, because the eye that develops the cloudy looking lens will have issues developing properly. And finally, a droopy eyelid can also prevent vision from developing properly.
How can it be treated?
Well, the good news is that there are several potential methods of treatments that are commonly used. People are more likely familiar with the patch treatment. This can be a great opportunity for occasions where you have to dress up, because you’re already halfway to a pirate costume! All joking aside, the patch is actually an affective method for treating lazy eye, because it forces the lazy eye to be used by covering up the good eye. Make sure you follow your doctor’s directions with the patch to the t, however. It is only recommended to wear it up to 6 hours a day because in rare cases, wearing it for longer may actually cause lazy eye to happen in the good eye. Not exactly what we want to have happen.
If the lazy eye is caused by refractive issues, there are certain types of glasses out there that may be able to help correct the problem, by correcting the initial cause of the problem.
There is also a special type of eye drop that contains a medication called atropine. This acts similarly to the patch, by encouraging the lazy eye to be used while causing the good eye to temporarily have blurred vision. This is generally prescribed for use on the weekends, as obviously having purposely blurred vision doesn’t help going about daily life. On the weekend you have the chance to relax and chill out, and help yourself heal. The only downside to this method of treatment is that it can cause the eye to be sensitive to light, and irritation.
If you go with the corrective glasses method of treatment, an additional option that may be added is a bangerter filter. The filter is placed on the lens of the good eye, which causes it to blur and forces the use of the lazy eye. And finally if the lazy eye is caused by droopy lids or cataracts, your doctor may suggest surgery to correct it, in addition to the other forms of treatment available.
Lazy eye is a condition that, if left untreated, can cause more severe vision issues later in life. If you suspect vision issues in your child, it’s best to go get them diagnosed as soon as possible. The faster treatment begins, the better the outcome is.
Written by Yonah Leserowitz