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Lazy eye, medically known as amblyopia, afflicts one in 50 children and occurs when one of the eyes' visions failed to develop correctly, which leaves that particular eye with a squint-like appearance. People with lazy eye often appear to be looking into two different directions. Although lazy eye is not considered to be life-threatening, lack of treatment could mean permanent vision loss in some cases. Diagnosing the condition early and treating it can repair vision in the lazy eye. Treatment options include the patch method and topical medications, which can be long and frustrating processes. Due to the fact that these options can lead to treatment for an extended period of time, researchers have looked into better alternative treatments. According to a new study, doctors found that playing Tetris might help treat lazy eye.

In a study done by Canadian doctors from McGill University, they discovered that Tetris might be able to help train both eyes to work with one another. The study recruited 18 adults and compared the beneficial effects of playing Tetris versus the common patch method. The patch method involves using an eye patch to cover the stronger eye, which forces the lazy eye to work harder in viewing every day things. The eye patch technique requires the child to wear it for several days and even over the span of a few months. Because this method can be frustrating since it could take a long time to train the lazy eye, the research team, headed by Dr. Robert Hess, devised a new experiment that involves using goggles and Tetris in treating lazy eye with a more fun approach.

The research team asked nine adult volunteers with lazy eye to wear a unique pair of video goggles as they played Tetris for roughly an hour per day for two weeks straight, while the other half of the group used the patch method. The special goggles were designed so that one eye could focus on the falling objects while the other eye could look at the blocks that have already accumulated at the bottom of the screen. The researchers concluded that after two weeks, the group that played Tetris and used both eyes had better vision improvement than the group that used the patch technique.

"When we get the two eyes working together, we find the vision improves," Hess stated. "It's much better than patching, much more enjoyable, it's faster and it seems to work better."

The researchers added that other games might work as well as Tetris. Based from the findings in this particular study in adults, the researchers want to test the effects of the two-eye approach in treating lazy eye in young children.

The study was published in Current Biology.