Anisometropia
Anisometropia is a condition in which the power of refraction (i.e. change in direction of light rays as they pass from one optical medium to another, of a different refractive index) in the right-eye differs significantly from the power of refraction in the left-eye.
Possible effect on young children:
Anisometropia is a particular concern in young children because it can lead to amblyopia (common name: "Lazy Eye"), in which one eye significantly under-performs compared with the other eye. This can occur because when the degree of anisometropia reaches or extends beyond a certain level, the brain cannot reconcile the two different images coming from the two eyes and so develops a preference for the image coming from one eye and suppresses the image from the other eye, effectively starting to cease use of the eye not favoured by the brain.
Other possible effects of anisometropia:
Irrespective of the age of the patient, if untreated anisometropia can lead to diplopia (commonly known as "double-vision") or eyestrain.
More about Ophthalmology:
This section includes short definitions
of many diseases, disorders, and conditions of the eyes and visual system.
For definitions of other terms in this category, choose from the list
to the left (but note that this is not a complete/exhaustive list).
Other related pages include
- A diagram of the eye
- Definitions and descriptions of the parts of the eye
- A concise description of the human retina
- Definitions of parts of the retina
- Clinical and surgical procedures re. eyes and human visual system
For further information see also our pages of books about ophthalmology.
The following books may also be of interest:
