Aging and Your Eyesight - Presbyopia
Visit your Edmonton, AB Eye Doctor to Learn More About Treatment Options
Presbyopia is an age-related condition in which objects at a close range, such as newspapers, books or sewing, become blurred. With the growing worldwide population of older adults, a significant number of individuals are developing presbyopia, which is an unavoidable result of your aging eye.
Theories about the cause of presbyopia are that the eye will sometimes lose flexibility around age 40, making it harder for the eyes to focus on something, especially an object close by. Sufferers often deal with the reduced vision by holding a book away from their eyes or standing at a distance from the object they want to focus on. Transitions from looking at distant objects to nearer ones are often strenuous for those with presbyopia. This tension can add to one's discomfort by causing headaches, eye strain or fatigue.
Most often bifocal lenses or progressives (PALs) are worn to resolve this problem. Bifocal lenses have two points of focus, one is for viewing objects from far away and a second, lower portion for focusing on things that are close by. Progressive lenses are similar to bifocal lenses, however the transitions between the two prescriptions are more gradual and have no visible distinction between them. Wearers can more easily change focus, as they would if they had normal vision. A third option is reading glasses which, unlike bifocals or PALs which are worn continually, are used only when needed.
Presbyopes can also use multifocal contact lenses or monovision lens correction (when one eye is prescribed a distance vision and the other near vision) to improve the vision impairment. It may take a few tries to decide upon the best method and type of contacts because different lenses can have an effect on your comfort or distance vision.
Furthermore, there are options for other procedures including surgery that could be considered that you may want to discuss with your eye doctor. Many patients are most successful combining treatments for presbyopia. Also, because presbyopia will likely deteriorate with age, it is likely that you will need to keep adjusting your correction. With the population growing older, there is quite a bit of research being done to discover additional and perhaps more permanent treatments for presbyopia.
If you are beginning to notice symptoms of presbyopia, call for a check up with your Edmonton, AB optometrist. A return to normal vision is just a call away!
