Vision Therapy at Lyons Family Eye Care

07/28/2026

Has your eye doctor told you, "That's as good as your vision is going to get," after patching for amblyopia (lazy eye)?

Don't give up just yet. For some patients, adding vision therapy after patching can lead to further improvements in visual acuity. The following information comes from a colleague of mine who has considerable experience in this area.

"Effect of vision therapy on children and adults who showed plateaued improvement after occlusion therapy"

Purpose
To evaluate long‑term visual acuity (VA) trends following a structured vision therapy protocol in patients with amblyopia who had plateaued after conventional occlusion therapy.

Methods
This prospective cohort study included 157 patients diagnosed with amblyopia who showed no further VA improvement over at least three consecutive assessments during standard patching. All participants received individualized vision therapy comprising monocular and binocular exercises, fusion training, fixation stabilization, and perceptual tasks, combined with limited daily occlusion (1–3 hours). Therapy was delivered over 15 weekly in‑clinic sessions, followed by a structured home program. Visual acuity was monitored every 6 months over a 48‑month follow‑up period.

Results
A total of 177 amblyopic eyes from 157 patients (mean age 15.56 ± 10.6 years) were analyzed. Mean VA improved from 0.50 ± 0.23 at baseline to 0.70 ± 0.28 at 48 months (p < .001); 48.6% of eyes achieved a final VA of ≥0.8 decimal. Significant VA gains were observed across all age groups, with mean improvements of 0.24, 0.21, and 0.16 in decimal VA for ages ≤ 8 years, 8–18 years, and >18 years, respectively. The proportion of patients gaining ≥ 2 lines of VA was highest in the ≤8 years (62.5%) and 8–18 years (62.5%) groups, compared with 35.4% in those > 18 years. Isoametropic amblyopia showed the highest rate of ≥2‑line improvement (65.0%), followed by strabismic (63.6%) and anisometropic (44.2%) types. No statistically significant difference in visual outcomes was observed between the two protocols (Haidinger’s brushes/flashing vs. adding perceptual learning; p = .385).

Conclusion
Vision therapy can produce clinically meaningful and durable visual improvements in amblyopic patients who no longer respond to occlusion alone. The present study also supports extending amblyopia treatment into adolescence and adulthood, while emphasizing the need for tailored approaches based on the etiology of amblyopia and age.

To evaluate long‑term visual acuity (VA) trends following a structured vision therapy protocol in patients with amblyopia who had plateaued after conventional occlusion therapy.This prospective coh...

07/22/2026

My colleague in Wisconsin does a wonderful job comparing ADHD and Functional Vision Problems.

Lyons Family Eye Care provides comprehensive examinations that diagnose functional vision problems and also provides optometric vision therapy.

Don't forget you can have ADHD AND Functional Vision Problems as well. It's not necessarily a one or the other situation.

07/19/2026

Now that optometric vision therapy has improved your ability to see. Perhaps it's time to improve your writing as well. This is not therapy, but rather a few suggestions from a fellow who has written and published a great deal. I wish I had this tutorial when I was younger.

Learn for FREE!

I've spent decades writing and editing books, book chapters, and hundreds of articles. Before I wrote fiction, I had to survive one of the toughest editors of all, scientific peer review. If your writing could withstand that, it had to be clear, concise, and worth reading.

Now I'm using those same editing skills to help fiction writers tell better stories.

I'm sharing everything I've learned in a FREE series of writing tutorials.

Learn how to make readers want to read the next sentence, the next paragraph, and the next chapter.

Start here: Tutorial #1 at dominickmaino.substack.com.

It's free. No catch. Just better writing.

05/26/2026

One of my colleagues tells a story about one of her patients. This story is about the hidden problem of functional vision deficits and how it affects reading.

Lyons Family Eye Care evaluates and provides treatment for these problems.

"Reading Specialist Discovers Why Her Child was Struggling in School

There’s a reason why functional vision problems are called “the hidden disability.” It’s because so many parents, physicians and educators aren’t aware of them. In this case, a reading specialist discovered her daughter had a vision problem, and the subsequent treatment was an eye-opening experience...."

https://www.thevisiontherapycenter.com/discovering-vision-therapy/reading-specialist-discovers-why-her-child-was-struggling-in-school?

When a reading specialist’s daughter begins struggling in school, she discovers a surprising solution in vision therapy.

03/31/2026

Music offers many benefits for children including improved performance on math and attention....

Please bring your family to this free concert.

America Sings!

We need this now more than ever.

The Carlson Community Services Fine Arts Committee in cooperation with the world renown Apollo Chorus of Chicago will offer a FREE concert on Sunday, April 19th.

Conductor, Dr. Stephen Alltop serves as Music Director of the Apollo Chorus of Chicago, the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra, and the Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and performed with the Joffrey Ballet, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Music of the Baroque, Omaha Symphony, and the Peninsula Music Festival.

[I (Dr. Maino) have been most fortunate to have worked with Dr. Alltop while doing my best singing tenor during programs at Northwestern University's Alice Millar Chapel and St. Bartholomew Church. He and all who will be performing at this concert will be incredible!]

Sunday, April 19, 2026 at 2:00 p.m.
at Irving Park Lutheran Church, 4100 N. Harding Avenue, Chicago IL

for a >>>free Spring concert

03/18/2026

Reading and Eye Problems: Signs and Symptoms
Available at dominickmaino.substack.com

By Dominick M Maino, OD, MEd, FAAO, FCOVD-A

03/12/2026

Now available at dominickmaino.substack.com

Dr. Maino is an Emeritus Professor at the Illinois College of Optometry/Illinois Eye Institute and a Consultant to Lyons Family Eye Care

02/25/2026

From a colleague in Wisconsin:

Are Hidden Vision Problems Holding You Back in Sports?

Why Good Depth Perception is Crucial for Athletes
What Causes Poor Depth Perception?

See the link below for more info:

Read how hidden vision problems might be holding you back as an athlete.

01/28/2026

Glossary of Ridiculous Nautical Jargon

11/26/2025

Do you have a little one at home? Check this out!

Join us on December 7 for a FREE workshop and sneak peek at RAIN! 💧Fill out the form in our bio to RSVP. We hope to see you and your littlest ones there!