Meridional Amblyopia and Spectacle Correction: A Prospective Interventional Study of Children Aged 4-11 Years

Background Amblyopia, often linked to high astigmatism in children, presents challenges in understanding the contributing factors and visual outcomes. Methods A total of 132 samples were included in this prospective pre- and post-interventional study using the purposive sampling technique. Descriptive statistics were applied for age, gender, uncorrected visual acuity, corrected visual acuity, type, and magnitude of astigmatism. A repeated measure ANOVA was used, and a paired t-test was also done for groups with corrected visual acuity in meridional amblyopia at two follow-ups spaced six months apart. Logistic regression was used to identify the association between astigmatism types and patients' recovery from amblyopia after intervention. Results The age of participants was 4-11 years with meridional amblyopia. Initial findings showed a mean uncorrected visual acuity of 0.73 LogMAR in the right eye (RE) and 0.71 LogMAR in the left eye (LE), improving significantly to 0.35 LogMAR post-intervention in both eyes. The calculated mean difference between the first correction and the first follow-up was 0.12 and 0.13 LogMAR, while it was 0.20 and 0.21 LogMAR in the RE and LE, respectively, at the second follow-up. Spherical refractive errors averaged +0.93 DS, with mean cylindrical refraction indicating predominant with-the-rule corneal astigmatism (-3.46 DS). We observed a significant improvement in visual acuity (p-value < 0.001) and an increase in the magnitude of cylindrical prescription (p-value < 0.001). However, astigmatism types are not associated with response to therapy. Conclusion The study concluded that early detection of meridional amblyopia and early intervention with spectacles significantly improve visual acuity.