Have you been told there’s no successful treatment for lazy eye in adults? Well, the old wisdom is wrong!
According to a study in Clinical & Experimental Optometry an estimated 5 percent of the U.S. adult population have a lazy eye. Until recently, these adults have been told they are just ‘too old’ to successfully treat their lazy eye.
Even vision therapy, which is an effective treatment for lazy eye in childhood, was thought to only work in children before the age of 10.
A recent study funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI) found that lazy eye can be successfully treated in teens up to the age 17, and even in adults.
Here are the top 7 frequently asked questions about treating lazy eye in adults:
Q1: What is a lazy eye?
Lazy eye, also known as amblyopia, occurs when one eye is significantly weaker than the other, causing the brain to prioritize signals coming from the stronger eye, to the detriment of the weaker eye.
As the brain gets more accustomed to “listening” to the signals from the stronger eye, it increasingly ignores the signals from the weaker one.
Lazy eyes can impact your quality of life by leading to difficulties in reading, concentration and depth perception.
Imagine trying to drive with one eye closed and without 3D vision?
It’s important to note that a lazy eye is not the same as a crossed or turned eye, which is a separate condition called strabismus.
Strabismus can lead to a lazy eye if the crossed eye causes visual symptoms and the brain starts to ignore the visual signals from the turned eye.
Q2: What causes a lazy eye?
According to Nemours Children’s Health, one of the largest integrated pediatric health systems in the United States, amblyopia is most often hereditary in origin. Meaning it runs in families and genetics is the primary cause.
Lazy eyes are also more common in children born prematurely or who have developmental delays or children with special needs, such as Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Down Syndrome.
To avoid visual problems, the brain will ‘shut off’ the weaker eye, causing a lazy eye.
In a healthy visual system, the brain will receive two images, one from each eye, the brain then combines these images to produce a clear 3D visual image. This is called binocular vision, and is the basis of important skills like depth perception.
With amblyopia, binocular vision is severely hindered as a result of the brain primarily utilizing the images coming from one eye, causing a range of visual-related problems including double vision or eye strain.
Severe nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism, or a constant eye turn can also cause a lazy eye.
Q3: What happens if a lazy eye remains untreated?
A study from the National Eye Institute found that amblyopia is the leading cause of single-eye vision impairment in the United States.
If left untreated, a lazy eye may never develop good vision, and may even become functionally blind, which results in life-long vision loss.
Adults with lazy eyes may experience fatigue and eye strain and extreme difficulties with 3D vision and depth perception, affecting their work productivity and enjoyment of sports and fun activities.
An untreated lazy eye can also cause permanent issues with central vision and lead to the development of other eye conditions, such as strabismus, in which the eyes become misaligned.
Q4: What is vision therapy?
Going to an eye doctor for vision therapy is like going to the gym for your eyes and your brain.
Vision therapy, is an effective treatment for lazy eye in childhood, was thought to only work in children before the age of 10.
Studies funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI) found that lazy eye can be successfully treated even in adults.
Vision therapy is a customizable, individualized treatment program performed under the supervision of an eye doctor.
This personalized program involves a series of progressive eye exercises to help you steadily develop normal visual skills that will improve the communication between your brain and your eyes.
Sessions are usually once per week, and last roughly 30-45 minutes.
Your eye doctor will assign home eye exercises to reinforce skills worked on during the in-office therapy sessions.
Commitment to weekly sessions and therapy homework assignments are essential for optimal results.
Contact an eye doctor near you to learn more about vision therapy for lazy eye.
SEE RELATED: Lazy Eye FAQs
Q5: Is vision therapy effective in treating adults with lazy eye?
Yes.
The root cause of lazy eye is poor binocular vision. This is one of the main problems vision therapy can address.
Lazy eye in adults can be successfully treated by improving their visual skills, which can be achieved at any age.
Although retraining the visual system through vision therapy is most effective when it’s done at an early age, when the brain is most flexible and adaptable, the brain still retains the ability to adapt and change in fundamental ways all through adulthood.
This means that it is still possible at any age to retrain the visual system to function properly.
Adults are also very often highly motivated to improve their visual skills, and find it easier to commit to the necessary training and exercises.
Q6: How does vision therapy help treat lazy eye in adults?
Vision therapy has been shown to greatly improve the visual skills of the lazy eye by training both eyes to work together to achieve clear and comfortable binocular vision.
Vision therapy programs treat lazy eye by improving these visual skills:
- Focusing: The eyes’ ability to focus clearly on objects as they move closer together and farther away.
- Fixation: The eyes’ ability to accurately look at and maintain its gaze on an object.
- Pursuits: Also known as eye tracking, pursuits allow our eyes to smoothly follow objects in motion, such as a ball.
- Saccades: The ability to move the eyes quickly and accurately across a page to read a line of print, as the eyes jump from one chunk of text to the next.
- Spatial skills: Also known as eye-hand coordination, this is the ability to accurately use our hands and eyes together to perform activities like drawing or hitting a baseball with a bat.
- Stereopsis: The 3-D vision made possible by our two eyes working together accurately. It’s essential for things like binocular vision and depth perception.
Q7: Are there surgical options for adults with lazy eyes?
No.
Surgical options are generally not recommended by eye doctors to correct a lazy eye in adults.
Eye surgery for an adult with a lazy eye might be only advised for cosmetic reasons, in an attempt to straighten an eye turn.
With proper motivation and commitment to the custom designed eye exercises in your vision therapy regimen, there is a strong possibility that your vision will improve – even if you are an adult.
Vision therapy, which is an effective treatment for lazy eye in childhood, was thought to only work in children before the age of 10.
A recent study funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI) found that lazy eye can be successfully treated up to the age 17, and even in adults.
LEARN MORE: Vision Therapy for Lazy Eye
Contact an eye doctor near you to learn more about vision therapy for lazy eye.
