Can spectacles correct -2.50 D power in my lazy left eye?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am a teenager. My left eye has got a power of -2.50 D and I am near-sighted. Will my lazy eye recover to normal vision by using spectacles? How long does it take?

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

As you have told that you have -2.5 D in the left eye but you have not mentioned refraction of the right eye. Please tell me your exact age? From how long you are using glasses? Do you patch your normal eye or have you done patching previously? Please explain the refraction of both eyes and your corrected vision with these glasses? Is there any deviation of eyes (crossed eyes or squint eyes)? What I understand from this that your right eye is 6/6 and the left eye is lazy eye due to myopia (minus glasses). So actually lazy eye is when one eye can see a clear image and the second eye cannot see clearly due to refractive error and the vision remains blurry in that eye. So vision will not develop properly if glasses are not used at an early age. The connection between the eyes and brain develop in 8-11 years of age and that is the sensitive period. The most common cause of lazy eye is the difference of refractive error between two eyes (Anisometropic amblyopia), the difference of more than one diopter can cause lazy eye (amblyopia). So the most sensitive period is 8-11 years, but in a few paper they say lazy can be improved in teens by full correction with glasses and patching of the normal eye (results are not unpredicted). So you can try full correction glasses and at day time while you are awake patch your right eye for two to six hours and use your left eye so that vision could develop in that. The success rate is less if the patching started at a late age, and amblyopia is severe. One more thing do not patch your right eye all the time because there could be reverse amblyopia due to lack of use of right eye. Studies have shown that patching for two hours and six hours have almost equal results. So patch your good eye while reading or doing some work. Consult your eye doctor for repeat refraction every three to six months. If patching does not improve the vision after six months, there are a fewer chances of further improvement.