Do you or one of your loved ones suffer from lazy eye? 

The experts are Bynocs are here to help. We spoke to MD Oliullah Abdal about the benefits offered by this pioneering treatment. 

It really is very, very simple indeed. 

OK, first up – what is amblyopia and how do I know if it affects me?

Amblyopia, commonly known as ‘Lazy eye’, is a vision-related disorder that affects young children.

In some children, only one of the two eyes focuses properly. This is a vision problem called lazy eyes (the medical term for this is Amblyopia).

It is caused when the two eyes send different images to the brain. For example, it may happen if one of the eyes is more near sighted, farsighted, or has more astigmatism (refractive error) than the other, or if the child has a squint. The brain then primarily processes the information coming from the better eye, ignoring the other.

If unnoticed or untreated, it can continue to affect in later years. It is estimated that about 4% of children and between 2-5% of the adult population is affected by this visual impairment.

Symptoms in Children

When a child develops a lazy eye, parents may observe that their child faces difficulty in focusing on objects, or they squint or shut one of the eyes to view the objects or surroundings clearly. Often, the child’s eyes may appear to turn inward, outward, and they may not work together in coordination.

Older children may also complain of poor perception of depth and an inability to view things clearly from a distance, such as writing on the classroom board. It affects the performance in school, sports and in social behaviour.

When children develop such symptoms, It is important to consult a paediatric ophthalmologist as soon as possible to enable early treatment.

Symptoms in Adults

If a child with lazy eyes does not receive early treatment, the condition may worsen and persist in adulthood.

The common complaints of adults having lazy eyes are:

  • Blurred or double vision
  • Uncoordinated eye movements
  • Poor depth perception
  • Squinting or closing one eye to view better

How does Bynocs treat amblyopia?

Bynocs AmblyGo is a simple and engaging eye treatment program that can be performed with a laptop / desk. Bynocs Dichoptic eye treatments work by offering simultaneous and separate visual stimuli to both eyes.

In simpler terms, depending on the impairment, both eyes are presented with different stimuli simultaneously, which helps enhance the contrast difference perceived by both eyes. This can help achieve a balance between the normal eye and the lazy eye.

The initial evaluation can be done at any eye clinic enrolled with Bynocs. The treatment sessions can be undertaken either at the eye clinic or in the comfort of one’s home.

What differs the Binocular Treatment to more traditional treatments? 

Traditional treatment has lot of limitations such as

  • Lesser success rates and higher incidence of residual visual deficit.
  • Prolonged treatment over many years is essential for optimal results.
  • Monocular treatment – treats one eye only.
  • Chances of visual disturbances occurring in the stronger eye.
  • Possibility of relapse once patching is discontinued.
  • Discomfort to the eyes and the child due to eye-drop installation or patching.
  • Patching may cause social anxiety in children.
  • Non-compliance to patching due to peer pressure.
  • Patching is not helpful unless started at an early age (<9years).
  • Not useful to treat Lazy Eye in adults.

Who’ll benefit from Bynocs?

Any subject above the age of 5 years suffering from amblyopia/ lazy eye will benefit.

I’m a bit squeamish when it comes to my eyes – is there any risk involved?

Bynocs is a very safe non-invasive vision training program. However, as it is based on computer games, computer screen related tiring of eyes can happen in rare cases.

Will my lazy eye return in the future?

Bynocs offer a permanent cure to lazy eye. Usually the lazy eye never comes back after successful completion of the treatment.

For more info, see Bynocs