title: Randomized controlled trial of patching vs acupuncture for anisometropic amblyopia in children aged 7 to 12 years.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the effectiveness of 2-hour daily patching with the effectiveness of acupuncture in treating anisometropic amblyopia in children aged 7 to 12 years who have worn optimal spectacles for at least 16 weeks.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a single-center randomized controlled trial, 88 eligible children with an amblyopic eye who had a best spectacle-corrected visual acuity (BSCVA) of 0.3 to 0.8 logMAR at baseline were randomly assigned to receive 2 hours of patching of the sound eye daily or 5 sessions of acupuncture weekly. All participants in our study received constant optical correction, plus 1 hour of near-vision activities daily, and were followed up at weeks 5, 10, 15, and 25. The main outcome measure was BSCVA in the amblyopic eye at 15 weeks.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean BSCVA of the amblyopic eye at 15 weeks improved from baseline by 1.83 and 2.27 lines in the patching and acupuncture groups, respectively. After baseline adjustment, the mean difference of BSCVA between the 2 groups was 0.049 logMAR (95% confidence interval, 0.005-0.092; P = .03), meeting the definition of equivalence (difference within 1 line). The BSCVA had improved by 2 lines or more in 28 (66.7%) and 31 (75.6%) eyes in the patching and acupuncture groups, respectively. Amblyopia was resolved in 7 (16.7%) and 17 (41.5%) eyes in the patching and acupuncture groups, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Acupuncture produced equivalent treatment effect for anisometropic amblyopia, compared with patching, and was statistically superior. Further studies are warranted to investigate its value in the treatment of amblyopia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Acupuncture could potentially become an alternative treatment to occlusion therapy for amblyopia.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Centers for Clinical Trials Registry Identifier: CUHK_CCT00248.
authors.affiliation: Joint Shantou International Eye Center of Shantou University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Jianhao
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Dennis S C
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Lam
authors.forename: Li Jia
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yunxiu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Chongren
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Qiaoer
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Srinivas K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Rao
authors.forename: Dorothy S P
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.forename: Mingzhi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Ping Chung
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ritch
mesh_terms: D015670:Acupuncture Therapy; D000550:Amblyopia / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D002648:Child; D005139:Eyeglasses; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009779:Occlusive Dressings; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology