It has been found by the author that among the researches concerning acupuncture in the treatment of amblyopia, only anisometropic amblyopia has noticeable results with treatment. Based on the previous publications, a hypothesis theory of self biological single eye occlusion is displayed particularly for simplex anisometropic amblyopia. It is also reminded that amblyopia acupuncture treatment does not always have sufficient RCTs for clinical research, so it couldn't be promoted as a normalized clinic treatment measure on an international base. It is also mentioned that reports from mainland China present a significant discrepancy with that from international in terms of successful treatment percentage. This is probably caused by the disagreement of amblyopia test methods and clinical standards. Some important considerations and key points that require particular attention during amblyopia acupuncture treatment and several recommendations on development and directions for further research are also put forward.
Acupuncture Therapy ; Amblyopia ; therapy ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Male

To verify the changes of mesopic and photopic contrast sensitivity function of sound eye whose visual acuity was kept the same after occlusion therapy in the amblyopic children. Fourteen sound eyes of amblyopic children (mean; 7.67 years; S.D., 1.50 years) who kept their visual acuity the same after the occlusion therapy were tested. The children had 6 hours of part-time patch therapy for 3 months prior to this examination. Among 14 amblyopic children, 8 were anisometric and 6 were strabismic amblyopes. Using the visual capacity analyzer which measures the minimal contrast level at from low to high spatial frequencies, the contrast sensitivity of sound eye was measured, under both photopic and mesopic condition, before and after 3 months of occlusion therapy. Comparing the contrast sensitivity of sound eye after the occlusion therapy to that before the occlusion, there was no statistical difference in photopic condition. When it comes to mesopic condition, the contrast sensitivity decreased at the intermediate spatial frequency level (3-13 c.p.d, p=0.028) after the occlusion therapy. The occlusion caused statistically significant decrease in mesopic contrast sensitivity, when the visual acuity was not changed after the occlusion therapy. It may indicate that mesopic contrast sensitivity can be considered as a useful tool for early detection of hidden occlusion amblyopia.
Amblyopia/*physiopathology/*therapy ; Child ; *Contrast Sensitivity ; Humans ; Orthoptics ; Visual Acuity

OBJECTIVETo comparatively study the clinical effect of electrical plum-blossom needle on ametropic amblyopia and anisometropic amblyopia.

METHODSSixty children (107 eyes) with ametropic amblyopia or anisometropic amblyopia were randomly assigned to two groups at their first visit on the basis of optometry. They had never received any treatment before. Patients in one group were treated with electrical plum-blossom needle (as the treatment group) and those in the other group were treated with physical comprehensive therapy (as the control group). The 1-month clinical effect was observed.

RESULTSThe 1-month total effective rate was 79.6% (43/54) in the treatment group and 58.5% (31/53) in the control group. Statistical significance was shown in clinical effect after statistical management. The electrical plum-blossom needle showed better effect than the comprehensive therapy.

CONCLUSIONThe electrical plum-blossom needle for treatment of amblyopia in children could initiate faster with good compliance. Its short-term effect was definite with no side effect.

Acupuncture Therapy ; methods ; Amblyopia ; therapy ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Needles

OBJECTIVETo test the effects of corrective spectacles in hyperopic amblyopic children with heterophoria.

METHODSVisual acuity, refraction and the amount of heterophoria on near (33 cm) fixation were measured before and after 3 weeks of spectacle-wearing in 30 hyperopic amblyopic children with heterophoria. The control group consisted of 20 emmetropic children age-matched to the patients.

RESULTSUncorrected eyes displayed hyperopic amblyopia accompanied by heterophoria. Corrective spectacles not only attenuated the hyperopia and amblyopia, but also changed the heterophoria to orthophoria. The amount of heterophoria before wearing spectacles was significantly different from that in emmetropic children; but after correction with spectacles, it was the same as that in the emmetropic controls.

CONCLUSIONCorrection with spectacles is effective for the treatment of heterophoria in hyperopic children with amblyopia.

Accommodation, Ocular ; Amblyopia ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Child ; Eyeglasses ; Humans ; Hyperopia ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Refraction, Ocular ; Vision Tests ; methods

OBJECTIVETo compare therapeutic effects of auricular point sticking combined with Tongshiji treatment and simple Tongshiji treatment on child ametropic amblyopia.

METHODSThree hundred children of ametropic amblyopia were classified as mild, moderate and severe groups, 100 cases in each group. The each group was again randomly divided into a simple Tongshiji treatment (control group) and a auricular point sticking combined with Tongshiji treatment group (observation group). Their therapeutic effects were compared.

RESULTSThe total effective rate in the observation group were 100.0%, 79.8% and 71.0%, and in the control group were 100.0%, 54.3% and 48.2% respectivety for mild, moderate and severe groups. For the mild amblyopia children, there was no significant difference between the two groups in the therapeutic effect; for the moderate and severe ametropic amblyopia children, the therapeutic effect in the observation group was better than that in the control group (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONAuricular point sticking combined with Tongshiji treatment for child ametropic amblyopia is of characteristics of convenient manipulation, obvious and rapid therapeutic effect.

Acupuncture, Ear ; Amblyopia ; therapy ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional

The effectiveness and safety of acupuncture-moxibustion for the treatment of agrypnia was systematically reviewed. The clinical randomized controlled trial (RCT) of acupuncture-moxibustion for agrypnia were collected. The literature and document on acupuncture-moxibustion RCT for the treatment of agrypnia that published from January of 2001 to March of 2012 was searched with computer in PubMed, CNKI, Wanfang and VIP database. According to Cochrane Handbook 5. 1. 0, the bias risk and quality assessment were performed on every included trial and RevMan 5. 0 software was applied to make the Meta analysis. Totally 14 researches were included, involving 2662 cases. The Meta analysis showed that the differences of total effective rate between acupuncture-moxibustion and clinical routine treatment were significant [RR = 1.16, 95% CI (1.12, 1.19), Z = 9.32, P < 0.000 01]. The results indicate that total effective rate of acupuncture-moxibustion for agrypnia is obviously superior to that of clinical routine treatment, meaning clinical efficacy of acupuncture-moxibustion is served credit.
Acupuncture Therapy ; Amblyopia ; therapy ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Moxibustion

OBJECTIVEA systematic review of literature was performed to compare various visual function parameters including the final visual acuity outcome and/or adverse events between corneal refractive surgery (CLRS) and phakic intraocular lens implantation (p-IOLi) in the treatment of refractive amblyopic children.

DATA SOURCESTwo reviewers independently searched the PubMed, EMBASE, and Controlled Trials Register databases for publications from 1991 to 2013.

STUDY SELECTIONThere were 25 articles, including 597 patients and 682 eyes, was included in CLRS group. Among them, 21 articles reported the use of CLRS in the treatment of myopic anisometropia for 318 patients (13 photorefractive keratectomy or laser epithelial keratomileusis and eight laser in situ keratomileusis). And 11 articles had the results of CLRS in treating hyperopic anisometropic amblyopia children. Eleven articles reported the effect of p-IOLi for treating high myopia or anisometropic amblyopia, including 61 patients (75 eyes). Age, pre- and postoperation best-corrected vision acuity (BCVA), and spherical equivalent (SE) were compared in CLRS and p-IOLi groups.

RESULTSThe average age of CLRS group and p-IOLi group has no statistically significant difference. The SE in CLRS group for myopic anisometropia amblyopia patients was (-10.13 ± 2.73) diopters (D) and for hyperopic anisometropia amblyopia patients was (5.58 ± 1.28) D. In p-IOLi group the SE was (-14.01 ± 1.93) D. BCVA was improved significantly in both groups, and even better in p-IOLi group. Refractive errors were corrected in both groups, but there was no clinically significant difference in final SE between each group. More than one-half of the children had improved binocular fusion and stereopsis function in both groups.

CONCLUSIONSBoth CLRS group and p-IOLi group showed their advantage in treating refractive amblyopia in children. In comparing p-IOLi with CLRS for treatment of refractive amblyopia, no statistically significant difference in final BCVA was observed.

Amblyopia ; etiology ; surgery ; therapy ; Anisometropia ; complications ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Humans ; Myopia ; complications

The authors report two cases of suddenly deteriorated accommodative esotropia with amblyopia during part-time occlusion therapy. A 7-year-old girl with right accommodative esotropia, which was well controlled, showed marked increase in esodeviation after part-time occlusion and regained orthophoria without occlusion. This phenomenon was repeated. Recession of both medial recti was performed and orthophoria was well maintained at both distant and near targets. Accommodative esotropia of a 9-year-old boy with glasses also showed a striking increase in esodeviation after part-time occlusion. The authors recommended wearing only glasses without occlusion or surgery and he recovered fusion. Three months later, orthophoria was maintained at distant target, with 8PD esophoria at near target with glasses. Although this complication should be considered before occlusion therapy, it must be taken continuously if needed, because an increase of the deviation size with occlusion may simply reflect a true deviation and may not be a poor prognostic sign.
*Accommodation, Ocular ; Amblyopia/physiopathology/therapy ; Child ; Esotropia/*etiology/physiopathology ; Eyeglasses ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; *Sensory Deprivation

OBJECTIVE: To observe the effect of acupoint thread METHODS: A total of 60 children with refractive amblyopia were randomized into an observation group (30 cases, 2 cases dropped off) and a control group (30 cases, 1 case dropped off). In the control group, comprehensive therapy of eye covering of intact side and family refined performance was adopted. On the basis of the treatment in the control group, acupoint thread RESULTS: After treatment, the corrected vision was increased compared before treatment in the both groups ( CONCLUSION Acupoint thread
Acupuncture Points ; Amblyopia/therapy* ; Child ; Humans ; Retina ; Vision, Ocular ; Visual Acuity

OBJECTIVETo explore electrophysiology mechanism of acupuncture for treatment and prevention of visual deprivation effect.

METHODSEighteen healthy 15-day Evans rats were randomly divided into a normal group, a model group and an acupuncture group, 6 rats in each one. Deprivation amblyopia model was established by monocular eyelid suture in the model group and acupuncture group. Acupuncture was applied at "Jingming" (BL 1), "Chengqi" (ST 1), "Qiuhou" (EX-HN 7) and "Cuanzhu" (BL 2) in the acupuncture group. The bilateral acupoints were selected alternately, one side for a day, and totally 14 days were required. The effect of acupuncture on visual evoked potential in different spatial frequencies was observed.

METHODSUnder three different kinds of spatial frequencies of 2 X 2, 4 X 4 and 8 X 8, compared with normal group, there was obvious visual deprivation effect in the model group where P1 peak latency was delayed (P<0.01) while N1 -P1 amplitude value was decreased (P<0.01). Compared with model group, P1 peak latency was obviously ahead of time (P<0.01) while N1-P1 amplitude value was increased (P<0.01) in the acupuncture group, there was no statistical significance compared with normal group (P>0.05). Under spatial frequency of 4 X 4, N1-P1 amplitude value was maximum in the normal group and acupuncture group. With this spatial frequency the rat's eye had best resolving ability, indicating it could be the best spatial frequency for rat visual system.

CONCLUSIONThe visual system has obvious electrophysiology plasticity in sensitive period. Acupuncture treatment could adjust visual deprivation-induced suppression and slow of visual response in order to antagonism deprivation effect.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Amblyopia ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Animals ; Evoked Potentials, Visual ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Long-Evans