According to a 1997 survey, 97% of eye care professionals prefer to treat with patching, even though compliance is only estimated to be between 49% to 87%.

Although patching has been the standard of care, parents preferred the painless atropine drops, which blurred vision in the good eye, forcing the affected eye to work harder.

Since both patching and atropine work equally well, the choice of treatment can be made by the eye care professional in consultation with the parent.