BMJ  2003;327 (29 November), doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7426.0

Children with mild ambylopia may not need treatment

Delaying screening for unilateral visual impairment until the age of five may not affect outcome, and only children with moderately impaired acuity (6/18 or worse) need treatment. Clarke and colleagues (p 1251) randomised 177 preschool children with impaired vision to no treatment, glasses, or full treatment (glasses plus patch). Waiting a year, until the start of school, to begin treatment halved the likelihood of needing a patch and did not alter the potential for improvement. At 18 months' follow up, acuity did not differ in the groups. Children with minimally reduced vision (6/9) in only one eye may not need treatment at all, the authors say.


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Relevant Article

Randomised controlled trial of treatment of unilateral visual impairment detected at preschool vision screening
M P Clarke, C M Wright, S Hrisos, J D Anderson, J Henderson, and S R Richardson
BMJ 2003 327: 1251. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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