Ambliopia

Abstract

Amblyopia has a prevalence between 1.6% and 3.6% in countries where health care is good. These numbers are higher in countries where eye care is less effective than in wealth societies. Staying updated with the latest developments in amblyopia is fundamental for the every day practice of any eye care practitioner because amblyopia is mostly treatable when detected in time. Amblyopia is curable and that makes appropriated management, referral and prevention critical steps to avoid permanent visual consequences. The biggest challenge in amblyopia is the age of the patient, infants and children do not complain about poor vision and, most of the time, do not participate in the visual exam. This talk will touch the most crucial aspects of amblyopia, namely: classification, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, prevention and the latest clinical and basic research findings. In addition, the latest guidelines for prescribing glasses to infants and children will be reviewed. At the end of this talk it is expected that attendees will be able to: distinguish between different types of amblyopia, indentify the patient at risk, participate in programs that aim to prevent amblyopia and make the best decisions regarding glasses prescription.