CEREBRAL AMBLYOPIA

   The term cerebral amblyopia is indebted to the Greek noun ambluopia, which means weakness of vision. It refers to a variant of * amblyopia, or diminished visual acuity, attributed to a lesion affecting the retrochiasmal part of the visual system. In cerebral amblyopia, the ability to see stationary light stimuli is affected, whereas the ability to perceive moving light stimuli within the scotomatous field remains intact. This dissociative phenomenon is known as *Riddoch's phenomenon. When the loss of vision in cerebral amblyopia affects both visual hemifields, the term bilateral hemiamblyopia is used. When only one of the visual hemifields is affected, the term unilateral hemiamblyopia applies. Cerebral ambly-opia constitutes the conceptual and phenomeno-logical counterpart of * akinetopsia.

   References

   Chua, B.E.-G., Johnson, K., Martin, F. (2004). A retrospective review of the associations between amblyopia type, patient age, treatment compliance and referral patterns. Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology, 32, 175-179.