Amblyopia in Congenital Esotropia before and after Surgical Correction

Abstract

Fifty-nine patients with congenital esotropia were retrospectively studied in order to determine the incidence of amblyopia before and after surgery, and the optimal timing for surgery to achieve the best visual result. Preoperatively, 28 of 59 (47%) patients had amblyopia compared to 6 (10%) patients, an average of 5.5 years after surgery. We found a low occurrence rate of amblyopia in those patients who received surgical correction between the ages of 6 and 24 months. We conclude that patients with congenital esotropia who undergo early surgery are not at increased risk for developing amblyopia. Early recognition of amblyopia, appropriate preoperative occlusion therapy, and surgical correction before age twenty-four months, may reduce the incidence of amblyopia in congenital esotropia.

• congenital esotropia
• amblyopia
• visual evoked response
• strabismus surgery