What is amblyopia commonly associated with?

Amblyopia, often referred to as "lazy eye," is characterized by decreased vision in one or both eyes that is not attributable to any detectable organic disease. Its most common association is with visual deprivation, in which the normal development of vision is disrupted. This condition can arise from factors such as strabismus (misalignment of the eyes), significant differences in refractive errors (anisometropic amblyopia), or conditions like cataracts that hinder visual input.

When visual deprivation occurs, the brain begins to favor one eye over the other, leading to a lack of proper visual development in the deprived eye. This results in permanent changes to visual function if not treated during the critical period of visual development in childhood, typically before the age of 7-9. Thus, addressing visual deprivation promptly through methods such as patching the stronger eye or correcting refractive errors is essential to restore balance and improve visual outcomes.

The other options, while they relate to vision issues, do not encapsulate the underlying mechanism of amblyopia as directly as visual deprivation does. Poor vision caused by refractive errors can lead to amblyopia but is more of a contributing factor rather than an inherent feature. Discomfort in light conditions aligns more with other conditions,