Electronically monitored occlusion therapy in amblyopia with eccentric fixation

  • Purpose: Amblyopia with eccentric fixation, especially when not diagnosed early, is a therapeutic challenge, as visual outcome is known to be poorer than in amblyopia with central fixation. Consequently, treatment after late diagnosis is often denied. Electronic monitoring of occlusion provides us the chance to gain first focussed insight into age-dependent dose response and treatment efficiency, as well as the shift of fixation in this rare group of paediatric patients. Methods: In our prospective pilot study, we examined amblyopes with eccentric fixation during 12 months of occlusion treatment. We evaluated their visual acuity, recorded patching duration using a TheraMon®-microsensor, and determined their fixation with a direct ophthalmoscope. Dose-response relationship and treatment efficiency were calculated. Results: The study included 12 participants with strabismic and combined amblyopia aged 2.9–12.4 years (mean 6.5). Median prescription of occlusion was 7.7 h/day (range 6.6–9.9) and median daily received occlusion was 5.2 h/day (range 0.7–9.7). At study end, median acuity gain was 0.6 log units (range 0–1.6) and residual interocular visual acuity difference (IOVAD) 0.3 log units (range 0–1.8). There was neither significant acuity gain nor reduction in IOVAD after the 6th month of treatment. Children younger than 4 years showed best response with lowest residual IOVAD at study end. Efficiency calculation showed an acuity gain of approximately one line from 100 h of patching in the first 2 months and half a line after 6 months. There was a significant decline of treatment efficiency with age (p = 0.01). Foveolar fixation was achieved after median 3 months (range 1–6). Three patients (> 6 years) did not gain central fixation. Conclusion: Eccentric fixation is a challenge to therapy success. Based on electronic monitoring, our study quantified for the first time the reduction of treatment efficiency with increasing age in amblyopes with eccentric fixation. Despite some improvement in patients up to 8 years, older patients showed significantly lower treatment efficiency. In younger patients with good adherence, despite poor initial acuity, central fixation and low residual IOVAD could be attained after median 3 months. Hence, the necessity of early diagnosis and intensive occlusion should be emphasized.
Metadaten
Author:Berna Mehmed, Maria FroniusORCiDGND, Tabea Pohl, Hanns AckermannGND, Charlotte Schramm, Konstanze Bettina Spieth, Christian Hofmann, Thomas KohnenORCiDGND, Yaroslava WennerORCiDGND
URN:urn:nbn:de:hebis:30:3-640593
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1007/s00417-021-05416-5
ISSN:1435-702X
Parent Title (English):Graefe's archive for clinical and experimental ophthalmology
Publisher:Springer
Place of publication:Berlin ; Heidelberg
Document Type:Article
Language:English
Date of Publication (online):2021/10/16
Date of first Publication:2021/10/16
Publishing Institution:Universitätsbibliothek Johann Christian Senckenberg
Release Date:2022/03/01
Tag:Amblyopia; Dose response; Eccentric fixation; Efficiency; Occlusion treatment
Volume:2021
Page Number:13
Note:
Funding was provided by Research Award of the association “Augenstern e.V.” (a non-profit association supporting research in paediatric ophthalmology) from Frankfurt, Germany.
Note:
Early View: Online Version before inclusion in an issue.
Note:
Version of Record: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:hebis:30:3-627996
HeBIS-PPN:491727402
Institutes:Medizin / Medizin
Dewey Decimal Classification:6 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften / 61 Medizin und Gesundheit / 610 Medizin und Gesundheit
Sammlungen:Universitätspublikationen
Licence (German):License LogoCreative Commons - Namensnennung 4.0