Some crude visual abilities are present at birth, and hence, do not depend on visual
experience. However, there are substantial and rapid postnatal improvements. For example …

Studies of children treated for dense cataracts afford an opportunity to examine the role of
visual experience in driving visual perceptual development. Collectively, the data indicate …

Psychophysical studies of children deprived of early visual experience by dense cataracts
indicate that there are multiple sensitive periods during which experience can influence …

The effects of early-onset blindness on the development of the visual system have been
explained traditionally by the stabilization of transient connections through Hebbian …

During early infancy, visual capabilities are quite limited. Nevertheless, patterned visual
input during this period is necessary for the later development of normal vision for some, but …

Animal and human studies have demonstrated that transient visual deprivation early in life,
even for a very short period, permanently alters the response properties of neurons in the …

Highlights•Congenital cataract reversal individuals reveal sensitive periods in human brain
development.•Striate cortex recovers to a larger degree than extrastriate cortex after sight …

Studies of children treated for dense cataract shed light on the extent to which pattern
stimulation drives normal visual development and whether there are sensitive periods …

Visual plasticity peaks during early critical periods of normal visual development. Studies in
animals and humans provide converging evidence that gains in visual function are minimal …

Visual acuity was assessed in 28 human infants who had been deprived of all patterned
visual input by cataracts in one or both eyes until they were treated at 1 week to 9 months of …