What is the medical term for double vision?

The medical term for double vision is "diplopia." This condition occurs when a person sees two images of a single object, which can be the result of various factors including eye muscle imbalances, neurological issues, or refractive errors.

Understanding the term "diplopia" is important as it directly refers to the symptom experienced by individuals when the eyes do not align properly, causing the brain to receive two different visual signals. This can lead to difficulties in depth perception and can significantly impact daily activities.

For clarification on other terms: "binocular vision" refers to the ability to use both eyes together to create a single visual image, which contrasts with the experience of diplopia. "Strabismus" is a condition that results in improper alignment of the eyes, which can lead to diplopia, but it is not synonymous with the term for double vision itself. "Amblyopia," often referred to as "lazy eye," is a condition where the brain favors one eye over the other and does not contribute to the incidence of double vision.

Thus, the specificity of "diplopia" makes it the correct term for describing double vision.