Criteria
American Academy of Ophthalmology: diagnostic criteria for amblyopia[1]
Amblyopia is diagnosed when the following criteria are met and a likely cause is identified. Amblyopia without the presence of ocular risk factors (i.e., strabismus, unequal refractive error, media opacity, or structural abnormality) is rare. If there is no obvious cause identified, an alternative diagnosis should be considered.
Unilateral amblyopia:
Asymmetric objection to monocular occlusion
Failure to initiate or maintain fixation, or unequal fixation preference across eyes
Interocular difference of two or more octaves with preferential looking (4 card difference on Teller Acuity Cards)
Interocular difference of two or more lines, with the better eye in normal range, on best corrected visual acuity testing
Bilateral amblyopia:
Best corrected visual acuity less than 20/30 in both eyes in a child age 5 or older
Best corrected visual acuity less than 20/40 in both eyes in a child age 4 to less than 5 years
Best corrected visual acuity less than 20/50 in both eyes in a child age 3 and younger
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