Question:
My daughter has refractive amblyopia. After a regimen of glasses and patching for the last 1.5 years, the vision in her amblyopic eye has improved from 20/200 to approx 20/20. She has limited stereo/3D vision and I am considering vision therapy (after reading the book "Fixing My Gaze" by Stereo Sue) to improve her stereo vision, even though there is a lack of scientific evidence to support the effectiveness of vision therapy. My question is, can vision therapy harm her vision in any way? Can it cause double vision or any else?
Answer:
Your decision to proceed with vision therapy despite the lack of scientific evidence to support its use in this situation is puzzling, but also common among parents. With the exception described below, I have not seen situations in which I have felt that vision therapy has harmed a child’s vision. I tell parents who seek vision therapy despite lack of evidence of effectiveness for their particular child’s problem that I do not object to vision therapy if it is something they have become convinced their child needs. I have encountered a number of patients who have developed troubling double vision after vision therapy. This has tended to patients who have been taught “diplopia (double vision) awareness.” Where such patients could previously ignore or suppress an extra image, they have been taught during vision therapy to unlearn this ability and with troubling results. I have seen this in patients with strabismus (misaligned eyes) but not in patients with refractive amblyopia. You should consider a discussion of the pros and cons of vision therapy with your Eye M.D. if you have not already done so. Answered by:
David K. Coats, MD 
