In this randomized clinical

trial conducted at 30 sites across the United States, Canada and Mexico,

175 children with visual acuity of 20/100 to 20/400 in the amblyopic eye

were prescribed patching for six-hour or full-time regimens. At least

three to four percent of children in the United States suffer from amblyopia,

a condition that decreases vision, most often due to crossing of the eyes

or having one eye with uncorrected refractive error (i.e. farsightedness,

astigmatism or high nearsightedness).

After four months, the improvement

in visual acuity in the six-hour group was nearly identical to the improvement

in the full-time group. Jonathan M. Holmes, M.D., a pediatric ophthalmologist

at the Mayo Clinic and co-chair of the Pediatric Eye Disease Investigator

Group, said patching for fewer hours eases implementation of the therapy

and compliance monitoring for parents.

Dr. Holmes, who chaired the

study, further explained, "The caveat should be that if the child

doesn't respond to six hours per day, then increased patching intensity

should be considered. But for severe amblyopia, it is reasonable to start

with six hours a day of patching, rather than full-time patching."

"This is the latest in

a series of important research results that will help preserve the vision

of children with amblyopia," said Paul A. Sieving, M.D., Ph.D., director

of the National Eye Institute (NEI), National Institutes of Health, the

Federal government agency that funded the study.

According to Academy spokesperson

Stuart Dankner, M.D., the study shows that children with more severe amblyopia

may respond just as well to a shorter six-hour interval of patching therapy

of the good eye as those children who previously required full-time patching.

Dr. Dankner, M.D., a pediatric

ophthalmologist in Baltimore and an assistant professor of ophthalmology

at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland, School of

Medicine, said, "Less than full-time patching may actually lessen

the risk of patching-induced amblyopia in the good eye. Many of the children

with more severe degrees of amblyopia may benefit from this change in

patching therapy, assuming the disease is detected at an early enough

age."

"Most children achieved

an outcome in the 20/32 to 20/63 range, but it is important to note that

this study was not designed to determine the maximal improvement that

could be achieved," Dr. Holmes said. "Most children stayed on

treatment for many months after the conclusion of the study to further

improve their vision."

The American Academy of Ophthalmology

is the world's largest association of eye physicians and surgeons-Eye

M.D.s-with more than 27,000 members worldwide. For more information about

eye health care, visit the Academy's partner Web site, the Medem

Network, at www.medem.com/eyemd. To find an Eye M.D. in your area, visit

www.aao.org.

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