A new study on lazy eye found that programmable electronic glasses help improve vision in children just as well as the more traditional treatment using eye patches. This "digital patch" is the first new effective treatment for lazy eye in half a century. Results from the first U.S. trial of this device will be presented at AAO 2015, the 119th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. Lazy eye, also called amblyopia, remains the most common cause of visual impairment in children. Amblyopia is poor vision in an eye that did not develop normally during early childhood. This can occur when one eye is much more nearsighted than the other, or when one eye wanders or strays inward. The child needs to receive treatment by the age of 8 or so while their eyes and brain are still developing, or he or she could become blind in the weaker eye. Unfortunately, getting children to comply with lazy eye treatments like eye patches or medicated drops remains a significant challenge for both ophthalmologists and parents alike. A recent study found that 1 in 4 kids feel anxiety before using eye drops. Nearly 15 percent refuse to take eye drops at all. Both drops and eye patches work based on the occlusion method. This method blocks vision in the eye with the best sight, forcing the brain to rely on the so-called “lazy eye.” During the process, vision improves though many children will still need glasses to correct their eyesight. In comparison, the electronic glasses used in this study combine vision correction and occlusion. The lenses can be filled to fit a child's vision prescription. Because the lenses are liquid crystal display (LCD), they can also be programmed to turn opaque, occluding vision in the left or right eye for different time intervals, acting like a digital patch that flickers on and off.Login Or Register To Read Full Story