Jonathan's new patch
Aaron's new patchBoth Aaron and Jonathan have amblyopia.
What is Amblyopia (lazy eye)?
Amblyopia, commonly known as lazy eye, is the eye condition noted by reduced vision not correctable by glasses or contact lenses and is not due to any eye disease. The brain, for some reason, does not fully acknowledge the images seen by the amblyopic eye. This almost always affects only one eye but may manifest with reduction of vision in both eyes. It is estimated that three percent of children under six have some form of amblyopia.
When we discovered that Aaron had it, he wore a patch on his eye for about 6 months. The adhesive patches were uncomfortable, they caused the skin around his eye to be raw, and it was not fun for him at all. He stopped wearing the patch because the doctor wasn't seeing much improvement with it. He kept wearing his glasses, however. We went back to the doctor in April, and decided to start patching him again. We waited until we were done with the school year ... and went right back to the patching. Once again ... we were dealing with the same issues. The patch is terribly uncomfortable for him. So, I went looking for some sort of alternative. I found this: Anissa's Fun Patches
I cannot begin to tell you how thrilled I am to have found these patches. Of course, Aaron would prefer not to have to wear anything at all. I wouldn't want my good eye to be patched up either! However, I am thankful that we have an alternative to the adhesive patches.
Jonathan's eye is not nearly as bad as Aaron's, so we are waiting to see if just the glasses will be enough for him. We went ahead and ordered one for him just in case we would need to patch him after he is rechecked.
Rich and I both had to be patched as children, so he and I both know how uncomfortable those patches can be. So, if you know anyone who has a child who needs to be patched ... pass on this great information!
What is Amblyopia (lazy eye)?
Amblyopia, commonly known as lazy eye, is the eye condition noted by reduced vision not correctable by glasses or contact lenses and is not due to any eye disease. The brain, for some reason, does not fully acknowledge the images seen by the amblyopic eye. This almost always affects only one eye but may manifest with reduction of vision in both eyes. It is estimated that three percent of children under six have some form of amblyopia.
When we discovered that Aaron had it, he wore a patch on his eye for about 6 months. The adhesive patches were uncomfortable, they caused the skin around his eye to be raw, and it was not fun for him at all. He stopped wearing the patch because the doctor wasn't seeing much improvement with it. He kept wearing his glasses, however. We went back to the doctor in April, and decided to start patching him again. We waited until we were done with the school year ... and went right back to the patching. Once again ... we were dealing with the same issues. The patch is terribly uncomfortable for him. So, I went looking for some sort of alternative. I found this: Anissa's Fun Patches
I cannot begin to tell you how thrilled I am to have found these patches. Of course, Aaron would prefer not to have to wear anything at all. I wouldn't want my good eye to be patched up either! However, I am thankful that we have an alternative to the adhesive patches.
Jonathan's eye is not nearly as bad as Aaron's, so we are waiting to see if just the glasses will be enough for him. We went ahead and ordered one for him just in case we would need to patch him after he is rechecked.
Rich and I both had to be patched as children, so he and I both know how uncomfortable those patches can be. So, if you know anyone who has a child who needs to be patched ... pass on this great information!
I wish I had one of those fun patches when I was kid. I can still remember the feeling and sound of my eyelashes scraping on that patch. I am fortunate that so far the children seem to have their father's good eyesight.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure it's a lot easier to get the boys to wear the patches now!
ReplyDelete