Corneal Refractive Surgery Effects On Adults With Amblyopia - A Case Series Of 44 Patients

We wish to show that a long held belief there is little to no use of treatment for amblyopia in adult populations. Our experience started from accidental findings to a general rule that is applied to all our patients today. Most people with amblyopia and anisometropia benefit from permanent refractive solutions. These patients can be helped achieve better vision and in case of unilateral amblyopia they can have a “back up” eye. 

This case series is a retrospective analysis of 44 adult patients, 20 patients in the myopia group and 24 patients in the hyperopia group. All patients underwent uneventful Femto LASIK surgery and were followed up for a minimum of 12 months. Data were assessed for normality using the Shapiro-Wilk test

In the myopia group 17 out of 20 eyes gained 2 lines or more of BCVA, in the hyperopia group 17 out of 24 patients gained 2 lines or more of BCVA. No eyes lost 2 or more lines and there were no adverse outcomes in this group.

Amblyopia in adults is often considered not worth trying to improve, the issue is the outcome expected for amblyopes should never be the same as for non-amblyopes, also it should be considered that even small gains will create a back up eye for this patient.