What should be done to prevent early amblyopia in children?

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted by an eye doctor - Department of Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital
Amblyopia in children is a condition of vision impairment that cannot be improved even with the use of prescription glasses or contact lenses. Amblyopia is usually not caused by eye diseases, but by the influence of brain activity.

1. How is amblyopia in children formed?

Normally, most babies born to adulthood have vision, but are still not aware of their surroundings. As the baby begins to develop, the nerves that carry the vision from the eyes to the brain and the nerves in the brain also develop. At this time, the brain will learn to analyze the signals and images transmitted from the eyes and this process lasts from 7 to 8 years.
After about 8 years of development, the optic nerve and visual area of ​​the brain will be complete, there are no other changes. Therefore, if during the "learning" period of visual function, the child does not use the normal operation of one or both eyes, there is a high probability of causing amblyopia in children.
In other words, amblyopia are abnormalities in visual function that occur in the brain, not the eyes. So, even if you don't have any eye problems or the diseases are completely treated, the vision loss will still be permanent, unless the child is treated for amblyopia before the age of 7 – The visual area of ​​the brain is not fully developed.

2. 3 leading causes of amblyopia in children

Up to now, there have been many identified causes of amblyopia. Among them, the following three reasons are the most common.
2.1 Refractive Abnormalities Refractive abnormalities in children, especially optic refraction irregularities such as nearsightedness (near vision), farsightedness (far vision) and astigmatism... are often caused by caused by the concentration of light at the vitreous inside the eye. Usually, refractive errors will occur in both eyes, each eye can have different refractive abnormalities. Rarely, one eye has an abnormal refraction, the other is healthy.
Refractive abnormalities can be corrected by having the child wear glasses. However, if the child does not have regular eye exams, it will be difficult for parents to detect that the child has an abnormal refraction of the eye.
2.2 Strabismus Strabismus (two eyes not looking in the same direction) is also likely to cause amblyopia in children. Cross-eyed will cause the eyes to focus on many different objects. Strabismus occurs quite early in children – especially during the time when the brain is learning to see.
Some cases when the eye is crossed and the vision in each eye is good. When the two eyes are used alternately at different times, the visual pathway also develops evenly between the eyes. However, in most cases of strabismus, the brain only uses one eye primarily for learning and the other eye will be ignored for signals. This causes amblyopia in young children.
2.3 Other abnormalities that interfere with vision Any abnormality that can interfere with vision (the ability to see things - surroundings) can be the cause of amblyopia; because the brain does not make the path for visual transmission to the eye.
Some types of abnormalities that commonly interfere with vision in children are:
Cataracts in one eye. Scarring in the cornea blocks light from reaching the back of the eye. Lower eyelids. Immovable refraction. Hereditary...

3. The problem of early prevention of amblyopia in children

“Is it important to prevent amblyopia?” The answer is yes!
Amblyopia when formed will last forever and your one eye will forever not have enough vision to observe your surroundings. Although the degree of vision loss can vary, it generally affects a child's quality of life and even health.

4. What should be done to prevent early amblyopia in children?

The period from 0 to 7 years old is an important time for children's vision function. Therefore, in this stage, any cause that interferes with vision leads to amblyopia. Therefore, the time from 0 to 7 years old is considered a "golden" period in the prevention and treatment of amblyopia in children.
Children need to have regular eye exams so that abnormalities can be detected early, so that they can quickly find the best method to correct them. Up to now, routine eye exams and optometry have become an important activity to help protect children's eyes. Some children with early eye problems such as refractive errors, cataracts... will be treated quickly to ensure that vision is not affected later.
It can be said that amblyopia in children is a dangerous condition and seriously affects children's lives later. To help your child avoid it, getting an eye exam, screening for refractive errors, and applying treatment-prevention solutions is the best way to reduce the risk of this problem.
In short, amblyopia is when vision in one or both eyes does not develop normally during childhood. Common causes are refractive errors, strabismus, damage to components of the eye. To prevent early amblyopia in young children, all children need to see a pediatrician, family doctor or ophthalmologist before the age of 4 to detect eye abnormalities, so that appropriate treatment can be taken. timely examination and treatment.

Currently, Vinmec International General Hospital has a refractive error screening package. When registering for Vinmec's refractive error screening package, customers will be
Screened for refractive errors (strabismus, nearsightedness, far, astigmatism, amblyopia) through general and regular eye exams. Monitor and manage periodically for 1 year for patients with refractive errors. Customers are consulted, examined and guided on comprehensive care to ensure eye health and improve vision. The modern American Spot Vision Screener machine measures refractive errors for children aged 6 months and older, with high accuracy, proven by measuring the eyes of nearly 40,000 children in Vietnam - data as of October/October/ 2017. Assessment of visual function for children who cannot speak by modern equipment of international standards. A team of doctors, nurses and technicians with many years of experience, trained and trained in medical science developed countries around the world.

Please dial HOTLINE for more information or register for an appointment HERE. Download MyVinmec app to make appointments faster and to manage your bookings easily.