Increased use of virtual reality helps with lazy eye
A University of California, Berkeley study subject in the Levi Lab is undergoing virtual reality (VR) therapy for amblyopia.
The most prevalent reason for diminished vision in youngsters is amblyopia, sometimes known as lazy eye. Furthermore, the illness, which impairs sense of depth, may persist until maturity.
However, amblyopia therapies have not evolved much until lately.
The conventional method involves covering the more powerful eye with an eye patch in order to make the brain use the weakened, or lazy, eye. It is not flawless, but it is effective nearly all the time.
Currently, a number of research groups are trying a novel approach to encourage the human brain to employ the data from both retinas more efficiently. Numerous startups have emerged, developing treatments that use this novel perspective.
A person with amblyopia may not always be able to see well. They may experience problems locating objects in space. Their frequent squinting may be caused by issues with sense of depth. This is because their brains are engaged in an invisible fight to control their sensory inputs.
Researcher Elizabeth Quinlan of the University of Wisconsin–Madison explains that in all instances of amblyopia, one eye is stronger than the other, and the fight for dominance takes place in the cortex. She claims that problems with one’s eyes may be fixed and researches amblyopia. The messages the eyes transmit to the brain are the reason why visual impairments continue to exist. The cortex adapts to disregard the cue from the inferior eye.
The brain fails to combine pictures from both eyes when it ignores the less powerful eye. Consequently, amblyopians may have difficulties perceiving in three dimensions.
Doctors treat amblyopia patients early on, when their brain circuits are still forming, in an effort to correct this. The kids, who are often less than seven, are frequently instructed to cover their dominant eye with an eye patch.
However, the competition may restart once the eye patch is taken off. For several weeks or months to come, kids usually wear their patches for a brief period each day. According to Dennis Levi of the University of California, Berkeley neuroscientist, new treatments must train the human brain to cease blocking important visual signals that originate in the less powerful eye if they are to have a long-lasting effect.
People have to get used to paying attention to that information and using it, added Levi. Scientists like Levi are investigating strategies to promote bilateral ocular coordination.
Businesses have come up to create brand-new therapies as well, and they have one of their own called Luminopia.
According to Luminopia CEO, Scott Xiao, there was a sense of surprise that in today’s world, these conditions were conventionally treated by eye patches. Xiao remarks, The statement that caregivers would find it difficult to persuade their children to put on eye patches struck him as being quite outdated and barbaric. The main goal was to create something superior.
Using a virtual reality headset, children get treatment from Luminopia by watching films such as Arthur, SpongeBob SquarePants, and Sesame Street. The headgear obscures a portion of the screen for each eye as the kids watch.
Xiao explained that the patients need to generate the complete video content by amalgamating two different images.
The business ran a research that showed that after three months of one-hour sessions six days a week, children with amblyopia start to see better on eye chart evaluations. However, long-term efficacy and improvements in depth perception have not yet been measured. In 2021, the Food and Drug Administration approved Luminopia’s therapy for commercialisation. According to Luminopia, it is accessible with a prescription and requires a monthly charge of around $50 if insurance covers it. Treatment often lasts no more than three months.
Luminopia treats children, not adults. According to scientific consensus, individuals with amblyopia will never be able to fuse signals from both eyes if they are not taught to do so at an early age. Some medical professionals believe it is hopeless to try to cure individuals whose brains have been blocking signals from their weak eye for many years.