Amblyopia: Types, Presentation And Treatment – A Review

A review of types, presentation and treatment of amblyopia was done. There are four major types of amblyopia namely: strabismic, ametropic (isoametropic), anisometropic and deprivation. The critical or sensitive period for each varies, although almost all cases present within 7 - 8 years of age. Amblyopia treatment should, therefore, be carried out as early as possible, with the co-operation of the patient=s family or other care-givers. Amblyopia treatment essentially aims at: i. Optimizing the clarity of the retinal image in the amblyopic eye by surgery or optical correction of refractive errors and; ii. Enhancing the neural stimulus to the visual cortex, in most cases by occlusion therapy. Conclusions: (i) Being among the top three causes of monocular visual loss in the adult age group from 18-85 years, this suggests that the condition persists well beyond the childhood years. (ii) Also, in spite of successful occlusion therapy in amblyopia patients, it has been found that visual acuity still diminished over time in some patients. The question therefore remains: Are childhood screening programmes for amblyogenic factors effective? Nigerian Journal of Ophthalmology Vol. 11(2) 2003: 54-6