Patient's question:
Female, 5 years old, my child has recently experienced a slight improvement in vision and has difficulty seeing things clearly. When checked at the hospital, the doctor said it was mild strabismus. I would like to know what are the causes of childhood amblyopia.Doctor's answer:
The causes of amblyopia can be categorized into several major groups. The first group is when a child has refractive errors. What are refractive errors? A child may have myopia, hyperopia, or astigmatism concurrently. If any of these three conditions exceed normal limits, meaning they go beyond the normal degree, amblyopia can occur. Some children may develop amblyopia if their hyperopia is below 200 degrees or their astigmatism is below 100 degrees.The second cause is strabismus-induced amblyopia. As I mentioned earlier, some children with strabismus can develop amblyopia. Children with esotropia are more likely to develop severe amblyopia. Additionally, some cases of amblyopia are caused by congenital eye conditions, such as cataracts, poor development of the retina, or nystagmus, among others.