Occlusion therapy

What is amblyopia?

Amblyopia, also known as a ‘lazy eye’ is when there is poor vision in one eye or sometimes both eyes. It occurs when normal visual development is interrupted in early childhood.

What causes amblyopia?

Amblyopia can be caused by:

• a squint (strabismus), when one eye appears straight and the other turns in, out, up or down
• a difference in the glasses prescription between the 2 eyes
• a structural obstacle which prevents light from entering the eye as it normally would, such as a cataract or droopy eyelid

How is amblyopia treated?

Amblyopia can be treated with glasses for full time wear. If your child’s vision is still reduced after a period of adapting to glasses, then occlusion treatment may be needed. Occlusion treatment involves wearing an eye patch or instilling atropine eye drops into the better seeing eye.

How does patching work?

A patch is used to cover the good eye for a period each day and to promote the vision in the weaker eye. If your child wears glasses, it is vital that the patch and the glasses are used together.

The patch is used to improve vision in the amblyopic eye and is not a cure to straighten the eye or remove the need for glasses.

Will it get better on its own?

No, if left untreated the child may have permanently impaired sight in the ‘lazy’ eye.

Treatment is most successful before the ages of 7 to 8 years old, whilst the visual system is still developing. After this age it is much more difficult to improve vision.

How long will my child need to use the eye patch?

This is dependent on level of vision in each eye. It is not possible to predict at the start of treatment how long it will last for. If the vision does not improve after a reasonable period of patching treatment, you may be recommended to try atropine drops treatment or to discontinue treatment.

What if my child will not wear the eye patch?

It is important to persevere with patching as it is more effective the earlier it is started.

Try to distract your child whilst they are wearing the eye patch. Encourage them to read, write, colour, watch TV or play on their tablet whilst wearing their eye patch.

Consider a reward chart to keep your child motivated. Ask for help and support from others such as nursery or school.

The amount of time worn can be split across the day if that easier for your child.

When your child is wearing the patch, they will not be able to see things to the side of their patch and may not be able to see well at first. Therefore, they should be properly supervised, teachers at nursery or school should be informed of this to make sure your child is supported.

What if my child is allergic to the eye patches?

Very occasionally sticky eye patches can cause a reaction to the skin. If this happens, please contact the eye department and they can supply you with a hypoallergenic eye patch.

How often will my child need to be seen at the hospital?

Your child will need to be reviewed regularly whilst on treatment.

If you change your appointment or are unable to attend, please let a clinician know that your child is on patching treatment. If your appointment is significantly delayed you may have to temporarily stop treatment as your child may be at risk of developing double vision if they are patching without close supervision.

Double vision

If your child complains of double vision, please stop patching and contact the department for advice.

What if I run out of patches?

If you run out of patches get in touch and we can send you some more in the post.