27 Feb Amblyopia Helped By Two Hours of Patching
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Eric Crouch, MD, FAAO, FAAP, FACS
Vice Chair, PEDIGAssociate Professor
Department of Ophthalmology
Eastern Virginia Medical School Assistant Professor
Department of Pediatrics Eastern Virginia Medical School
Chief of Ophthalmology, Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters Norfolk, Virginia
MedicalResearch: What is the background for this study?
Dr. Crouch: In this letter PEDIG is reporting on the improvement in vision during the run-in phase of a study in children 3 years of age to less than 8 years old. During the run-in phase, the children were followed at 6 weeks intervals and served as the baseline for entering into a randomized trial for increasing the amount of patching. The patients were randomized to either 2 hours of prescribed patching or 6 hours of prescribed patching once they completed the run-in phase.
MedicalResearch: What are the main findings?
Dr. Crouch: For amblyopic children, even those who have moderate or severe amblyopia in the 20/100 – 20/400 range, clinicians can start treatment with patching two hours a day.
MedicalResearch: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report?
Dr. Crouch: Based on the results of the run-in phase of ATS15, 2 hours of patching is a reasonable starting point to initiate treatment in children with moderate to severe amblyopia.
MedicalResearch: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?
Dr. Crouch: Research in the field of amblyopia can continue to focus on novel approaches to visual rehabilitation that are flexible enough to accommodate busy schedules and still provide similar outcomes to traditional treatments.
Citation:
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Eric Crouch, MD, FAAO, FAAP, FACS (2015). Amblyopia Helped By Two Hours of Patching
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Last Updated on February 27, 2015 by Marie Benz MD FAAD