Amblyopia is when an eye has poor vision due to lack of development during childhood. This occurs because of decreased stimulation to the visual pathway of the eyes from: strabismus (turned eye), cataracts or drooping eyelids during infancy, uncorrected high prescriptions or unequal prescriptions between the two eyes that are left uncorrected.

Amblyopia can affect a child's reading ability, ability to see 3D images and videos, depth perception in sports, and  eliminate certain career choices (for example, becoming a pilot or police officer).

If discovered early, a lazy eye can be treated with proper correction and vision training exercises. Treatment is most effective if started before age 8. It is important to note that many children cannot effectively report poor vision at this age. This makes it important to have your child examined by your optometrist at the age of 6 months, 3 years, and yearly afterwords.