The contrast sensitivity function and childhood amblyopia.

We measured contrast sensitivity function and visual acuity in both eyes of strabismic and anisometropic amblyopic patients. There was a linear relationship between contrast sensitivity function and visual acuity in the amblyopic eye. As visual acuity decreased, the contrast sensitivity function decreased along the contrast sensitivity axis, and peak sensitivity shifted to lower spatial frequencies. After patching therapy, when visual acuity reached 20/20 in each eye, suggesting that the amblyopia was cured, there continued to be statistically significant difference in the contrast sensitivity functions between the eyes. The contrast sensitivity function from the previously amblyopic eye was depressed compared to the nonamblyopic eye. A comparison between patients with strabismic and anisometropic amblyopia showed that, when matched for visual acuity, the contrast sensitivity functions were similar for both the nonamblyopic and amblyopic eyes. However, a large difference was found between the amblyopic and nonamblyopic eyes of each group.