title: Characterization of bangerter filter effect in mild and moderate amblyopia associated with strabismus.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To evaluate the outcome achieved by using Bangerter filters in cases of mild to moderate amblyopia associated to strabismus.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective study comprising 30 children (age range 2-9 years) with unilateral mild to moderate amblyopia associated to esotropia and hyperopia. All patients were treated by prescribing the use of a Bangerter filter in the non-amblyopic eye in combination with the refractive correction. In all cases, the filter selected induced a reduction of the visual acuity of 2 lines below the best spectacle-corrected visual acuity (BSCVA) of the amblyopic eye. A follow-up of 12 months was completed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A statistically significant improvement in BSCVA was observed at 3 months in amblyopic eyes (p 0.01), with additional significant improvements at 6, 9 and 12 months (p 0.02). The BSCVA in non-amblyopic eyes remained unchanged during the initial 6 months of treatment (p 0.52), with a significant improvement at 9 months (p=0.03). Significant differences between amblyopic and fellow eyes were only detected at 3 months (p 0.01). Filter density had to be changed during the follow-up in 12 eyes (40%). Inverse significant correlations between baseline filter density and BSCVA were found at the end of the follow-up (r -0.35, p 0.01). A significant correlation of the visual acuity with the baseline visual acuity difference among eyes was only present at 3 months (r=-0.55, p 0.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Bangerter filters seem to be useful for treating mild or moderate amblyopia due to strabismus, but ocular dominance inversion should be maintained during treatment for obtaining an optimized outcome.
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Laria
authors.forename: David P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Pinero
mesh_terms: D000550:Amblyopia / Q000628:therapy; D005139:Eyeglasses; D006801:Humans; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013285:Strabismus; D014792:Visual Acuity