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Amblyopia
The smooth functioning of our eyes is closely related with the brain. The retina in the back of the eye converts image into electrical signals and sends it to the brain through the optic nerve. The lack of proper coordination between the eyes and the brain in receiving signals leads to Amblyopia or lazy eye. It is most commonly seen in children. After a period of time, the brain stops to receive signal from the weak eye and this leads to blindness in the particular eye.
The condition occurs only in children because it takes place during the visual system's development, which is mostly completed by the age of 10. If not treated successfully in childhood, it will lead to complete loss of sight in one eye (monocular visual impairment) during adulthood. Amblyopia mostly affects one eye and is hard to detect as the eyes look normal. Infant and pre-school eye examinations are very much necessary to detect lazy eye.
It is estimated that around 2% of the general population suffers from lazy eye and is one of the important causes for visual impairment in childhood. It is also the main cause for monocular vision loss in adults. Also, people with amblyopia have higher risk of becoming blind as the good eye can be lost from other causes.
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