title: Visual acuity through Bangerter filters in nonamblyopic eyes.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the amount of visual acuity degradation induced by Bangerter filters in the better seeing eye and to evaluate its stability over time in children with moderate amblyopia.
  
  
  METHODS
  Visual acuity with and without a Bangerter filter was measured in the nonamblyopic eye of 186 children with moderate amblyopia who were then treated with either patching or the Bangerter filters. A 0.2 filter was used for amblyopia of 20/80 and a 0.3 filter for amblyopia from 20/40 to 20/63. For the 89 children randomized to Bangerter filters, visual acuity was also measured in the nonamblyopic eye with and without the filters at both 6 weeks and 12 weeks after initiating treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean degradation in visual acuity of the nonamblyopic eye at baseline was 5.1 logMAR lines with the 0.2 filter and 4.8 logMAR lines with the 0.3 filter. The degradation with each filter did not always agree with the manufacturer's specifications. Over time, the amount of degradation with the filters decreased.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The 0.2 and 0.3 Bangerter filters degrade nonamblyopic eye visual acuity sufficiently in amblyopic children. Because the amount of degradation decreases over time, it is recommended to periodically apply a new filter when using this type of amblyopia treatment.
authors.affiliation: School of Optometry, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA. pedig@jaeb.org
authors.forename: Robert P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Rutstein
authors.forename: Nicole C
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Foster
authors.forename: Susan A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Cotter
authors.forename: Raymond T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Kraker
authors.forename: Dave H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Melia
authors.forename: Graham E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Quinn
authors.forename: Susanna M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Tamkins
authors.forename: David K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Wallace
mesh_terms: D000550:Amblyopia / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005139:Eyeglasses; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012683:Sensory Deprivation; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology*