There is no cure for a coloboma, and treatment varies depending on the type. People with an iris coloboma may wear colored contact lenses to make the iris appear round. Surgery can also correct the appearance of the iris.
For other types of coloboma, helping people adjust to their vision problems, including using low vision devices as needed, is important. Also, your ophthalmologist will help to manage other problems that occur with coloboma, such as cataracts or growth of new blood vessels in the back of the eye as the patient ages.
Your Eye M.D. may recommend particular treatments if your child has a coloboma in only one eye. To make sure that amblyopia (lazy eye) does not develop, the ophthalmologist may want to patch or use special eye drops or glasses in the unaffected eye. Sometimes this treatment can improve vision in eyes even with severe colobomas.
Image reproduced, with permission, from Holds JB, Basic and Clinical Science Course, Section 7, American Academy of Ophthalmology, 2011-2012.
