Farsightedness: Symptoms, Causes, Complication, Treatment And …

images (1)mjkFarsightedness (hyperopia) is a common vision condition in which you can see distant objects clearly, but objects nearby may be blurry.

The degree of your farsightedness determines your focusing ability. People with severe farsightedness may see clearly only objects a great distance away, while those with mild farsightedness may be able to clearly see objects that are closer. Farsightedness usually is present at birth and tends to run in families.

Symptoms
Farsightedness may mean:

Nearby objects may appear blurry

You need to squint to see clearly

You have eyestrain, including burning eyes, and aching in or around the eyes

You experience general eye discomfort or a headache after a prolonged interval of doing close tasks, such as reading, writing, computer work or drawing

Causes
Your eye has two parts that focus images:

The cornea, the clear front surface of your eye

The lens, a clear structure inside your eye that changes shape to help focus objects

In a perfectly shaped eye, each of these focusing elements has a perfectly smooth curvature like the surface of a rubber ball. A cornea and lens with such curvature bend (refract) all incoming light in such a way as to make a sharply focused image directly on the retina, at the back of your eye.

A refractive error
However, if your cornea or lens isn’t evenly and smoothly curved, light rays aren’t bent (refracted) properly, and you have a refractive error. Farsightedness is one type of refractive error.

Farsightedness occurs when your cornea is curved too little or your eye is shorter than normal. Instead of being focused precisely on your retina, light is focused behind your retina, resulting in a blurry appearance for close-up objects.

Complication
Farsightedness can be associated with several problems, such as:

Crossed eyes. Some children with farsightedness may develop crossed eyes. Specially designed eyeglasses that correct for part or all of the farsightedness may effectively treat this problem.

Reduced quality of life. Uncorrected farsightedness can affect your quality of life. You might not be able to perform a task as well as you wish, and your limited vision may detract from your enjoyment of day-to-day activities. In children, untreated farsightedness may cause learning problems.

Eyestrain. Uncorrected farsightedness may cause you to squint or strain your eyes to maintain focus. This can lead to eyestrain and headaches.

Impaired safety. For your own safety and that of others, don’t drive or operate heavy equipment if you have an uncorrected vision problem.

Treatment
The goal of treating farsightedness is to help to focus light on the retina through the use of corrective lenses or refractive surgery.

Prevention
Although you can’t prevent farsightedness, you can help protect your eyes and your vision. Follow these steps:

Have your eyes checked. Regardless of how well you see, have your eyes checked regularly.

Control chronic health conditions. Certain conditions, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, can affect your vision if you don’t receive proper treatment.

Recognize symptom

Don’t smoke. Just as smoking isn’t good for the rest of your body, it can adversely affect your eye health as well.

Use the right glasses. The right glasses optimize your vision. Having regular exams will ensure that your eyeglass prescription is correct.

Use good lighting. Turning up the lights can improve contrast and help you see better.

Eat healthy foods.

Latest Sunglasses | Optometry Cabana

Latest sunglasses with logo images..1

Sunglasses square measure over modern shades worn by celebrities to protect them from the prying eyes of the paparazzi. In fact, specs square measure a vital accent to protect your eyes from harsh UV.For all people who wear optical eyeglasses on a each day, Optometrycabana brings Associate in Nursing exciting vary of optical frames.These frames look great, area unit sturdy and area unit best priced on Optometrycabana. once you aim to search out the most effective optical frames to enhance your eye vision, our assortment of frames comes handy. you do not need to go anyplace longing for best frames as a result of here we provide the most effective selection within the market on one page.

 

Function

Sunglasses square measure worn to defend the eyes from mud, junk and daylight. The sun’s rays emit UVA and UVB light-weight and your eyeglasses ought to defend your eyes from each forms of radiation. Prescription eyeglasses additionally give protection for people that need eye correction on the far side reading glasses. These special lenses square measure obtainable at optical stores and at your native optometrist’s workplace.

Types

Latest Sunglasses area unit divided into four distinct classes of lenses: polarized, mirrored, chemical science and gradient. Polarized lenses area unit the popular lenses for folks that participate in sports and long-distance driving. Polarized shades facilitate to cut back the sun’s reflective glare off horizontal surfaces like oceans, lakes and covered surfaces. Polycarbonate lenses. These eyeglass lenses are impact-resistant and are a good choice for people who regularly participate in sporting activities

Sunglasses Eyeglasses Style

Styles of sunglasses vary from clip-ones and wraparounds to aviators, spherical lenses and huge spherical frames. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis created giant spherical frames well-liked within the Seventies among modern socialites and jet-setting travelers.

Trivet lenses. These lenses are made up of a more modern plastic with similar characteristics of polycarbonate lenses.

High index plastic lenses. Designed for folks that need robust prescriptions.

Aspheric lenses. These monocle lenses are not like typical lenses, that ar spherical in form.

Photo chromic lenses. Made up of either glass or plastic, these eyeglasses amendment from clear to tinted once exposed to daylight.

Polarized sunglasses. Lightweight mirrored from water or a flat surface will cause unwanted glare.

The type of vision downside that you just have determines the form of the monocle lens. for instance, a lens that’s pouch-shaped, or curves inward, is employed to correct myopia, whereas a lens that’s lentiform, or curves outward, is employed to correct hyperopia.

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Are Contacts or Glasses Best for You? – The Scrubs Trailer

Your eyes are an amazing sensory organ composed of several parts all working together to provide you with a view of your surroundings. But as with many things, sometimes these parts can malfunction and alter how well your eyes perform their job. Problems can occur for a number of reasons as well, such as from certain medications, illnesses, conditions, aging, or genetics. Common disorders that affect your vision include myopia, hyperopia, presbyopia, and astigmatism. All of these problems can usually be helped with the use of glasses or contacts from your eye doctor in Los Angeles.

Myopia, Hyperopia, Presbyopia, and Astigmatism

While you may not recognize this set of scary sounding words, you may recognize the more commonly used names for myopia and hyperopia of nearsighted and farsighted. Myopia is another name for being nearsighted, which means the person sees things that are up close clearly, but may have difficulty with objects that are further away. Hyperopia is farsightedness, which means you have the opposite problem by seeing far away objects more clearly but have difficulty with up-close objects. Being near or farsighted is often inherited, and can begin when you are a child or an adult. Presbyopia, on the other hand, generally occurs during old age, and is marked with difficultly in focusing on up-close objects. Astigmatism is commonly found in conjunction with near or far-sightedness, and causes a person to have an uneven blurriness in their vision that may require squinting in order to see clearly. Astigmatism occurs from the irregular shaping of parts of the eye, such as the cornea or lens. Your optometrist will usually suggest glasses or contacts to help correct these common vision problems. But which is best for you?

Pros and Cons of Glasses

As you most likely know, glasses consist of a frame that holds two lenses in place over the eyes. Glasses can contain one prescription, or be bifocals, which allow for two different optic levels in one lens. Bifocals are commonly used in presbyopia cases. Glasses are generally affordable, and are easily removed when needed. Plus, eyeglasses are easy to use with hardly any learning curve. There is also a wide variety of frame styles and colors to help suit a variety of tastes. But glasses can break, and this can often be a problem for those who actively participate in sports. They may also tend to fog up or smudge, and do not correct peripheral vision. A person who wears glasses may also find that their choice in sunglasses is more limited.

Pros and Cons of Contacts

Contacts use a small, round lens that fits over the surface of the eyeball. They are much less noticeable than glasses, move with the eye to provide corrected peripheral vision, and are excellent for most sports. They will not fog up or experience glare or reflection. But contacts require a learning curve, and can often cause irritation and even infection. Some may contribute to allergies, and can be difficult to fix if something happens to get in your eye without contact solution. While there are a variety of types of contacts that can vary in how often they will need to be replaced, you will need to keep track of how long they have worn. You will also need to continue to purchase the contacts and the cleaning solution. Being small and clear, contacts are often easy to lose. Many people may choose to purchase a pair of glasses with their contacts from their eye doctor in Los Angeles as a backup. 

The Latest Advance in Laser Eye Surgery | Medical & Health …

A new technology known as IntraLASIK was recently approved by the United States Foods and Drugs administration. This technology may change surgical performance on your LASIK procedure. The initial flap uses the conventional LASIK procedure and utilizes a mechanical device. The IntraLASIK procedure employs precision laser devices. This procedure does not use a surgical blade to create a flap.

LASIK is the acronym for Laser in-situ Keratomileusis’. It is a painless procedure that involves the creation of a flap on the cornea. It utilizes an instrument known as a microkeratome. The instrument makes a thin flap on the cornea. Once created and drawn back, laser surgery is done on the corneas’ deeper layer. Once the surgery is complete, the flap is folded back and may not require stitching. Patients who undergo this procedure have little or no post surgery discomfort. They have less chances of having corneal scarring and develop clear vision rapidly. Research shows that over 90 per cent of patients develop clear vision a day after the surgery. The main hurdle though is the expertise in creating the corneal flap.

Advantages of the IntraLASIK Procedure

This procedure uses accurate laser technology to produce the initial flap that is required during LASIK procedures. Some of the advantages this procedure boasts of are as follows:

· It is ideal for patients who have thin corneas, and
· It is accurate in creating a flap.

The IntraLASE Laser Technology

This technology was the first laser procedure to be endorsed by the United States. It involves the formation of LASIK flaps.

How the IntraLASIK Procedure Works:

The surgeon first determines the thickness and size of your flap. This collected data is fed into the laser device to allow the surgeons customize the procedure to suit your visual requirements. It is vital that a patient gets a nod from his or her eye doctor before undertaking this procedure. The doctor will discuss the potential risks associated with this procedure and advice accordingly.

What is PRK?

PRK stands for photorefractive keratectomy. It utilizes the excimer laser to treat eye conditions such as hyperopia, and myopia astigmatism. A laser beam commanded from a computer accurately removes a section of the corneal tissue. This procedure treats up to 12 diopters of myopia. This procedure normally takes about two minutes to accomplish. The eyelids are drawn back and the eye anesthetized. The PRK procedure is done, and then a contact lens placed on the eyeball for stability.

What is LASEK?

LASEK, on the other hand, involves loosening of the epithelium using a mild alcohol solution before laser surgery. The epithelium is then carefully returned to its original position after the surgery. A moderate discomfort usually occurs two days after the procedure and can be contained using oral or topical medication.

Other Eye Surgery Procedures:

Astigmatic keratotomy-

This is a surgical procedure done on the cornea to eliminate or reduce astigmatism. This is achieved by making one or two incisions on the cornea. This procedure can be merged with other laser procedures such as LASIK or PRK to accomplish better results.

Conductive Keratoplasty-

Popularly referred to as CK, this procedure employs radio frequencies to treat between 0.75 to 3.0 diopters of farsightedness. CK channels this radio frequency energy to a segment of the cornea to correct hyperopia. This procedure was approved in April 2002 by the Foods and Drugs Association for the correction of this eye condition. The first surgeon to perform this procedure was Edward Manche of the United States of America. He was by then the Foods and Drugs Association’s clinical investigator.

Intraocular Contact Lens-

This is a non surgical procedure that involves the placement of contact lens on the eye to correct or completely eliminate farsightedness or nearsightedness. 

Laser Epithelial Keratomileusis-

This procedure, as mentioned earlier, is a technique used to loosen the epithelial flap using an alcohol solution of low concentrations before surgery. This procedure reshapes the cornea. This procedure is an advanced form of traditional PRK. After loosening the flap with a spatula, it is detached and folded away from the target section of the eye. PRK is then employed to remove cataracts or clouds. The flap is then placed back on the cornea to conclude the procedure. Patients who are treated using this technology have a rapid rehabilitation period and experience little or no post-surgical discomfort.

Eyewear tips by Christopher Strauch, GlassesOnline.com.my …

Rule of thumb with eyewear

Glasses today are developing more and more into a fashion item for many. Accordingly knowing the right frame for your face and type is crucial to finding the right item out of the many choices available in the market.

Ultimately it is important that you feel comfortable with your new look. Next you have to choose the right lenses for yourself. Lenses differ depending on your regular use and your refractive error. Today most lenses come in a multi-hard coated option, i.e., already providing anti-scratch and easy-to-clean features.

However, you can opt for additional coatings to prevent computer or night glare, as well as transition lenses that change their tinting level depending on the intensity of daylight.

Furthermore, depending on your eye condition and power level, you might need specific lenses with a higher index, in order to reduce the lens thickness, or progressive lenses to provide correction for near and farsightedness to avoid the need for reading glasses.

A contact lens that is right for you

The decision to choose the right contact lenses is dependent on many factors, such as your refractive error, how frequently you wear them and the convenience level you expect. Recent trends show that more and more people opt for daily disposable lenses, as these don’t need to be cleaned and offer an easy option to swapping between glasses and contact lenses. Also depending on your eye condition, you might have to opt for special lenses.

Most lenses available in the market (soft/hard, daily/monthly, etc) are used to correct nearsightedness (myopia) and farsightedness (hyperopia).

People with blurred vision (astigmatism) need toric lenses, which provide different refractive powers on the vertical and horizontal orientations to address the specific peculiarity that causes astigmatism.

Since toric contact lenses have a particular orientation, fitting them to your eyes is even more important than usual. If you are suffering from presbyopia, an age-related loss of close-up vision which typically occurs around the age of 40, you need bifocal or multifocal contact lenses. Bifocal lenses have two prescriptive powers for distance and near vision, which can reduce or eliminate the need for reading glasses. Multifocal contact lenses are also available with additional variations in power to correct near, intermediate, and far vision.

Regardless of which type of lenses you require, contact lenses are being considered a medical advice and you should evaluate together with your eye doctor the best fit for your eyes.

Catching the new style trends

Styles change frequently depending on the latest fashion trends. This year we see three main trends, which are retro (especially round shapes from the 1920s), colourful frames (many suppliers include bold colours for their frames as well as lenses), and the classic bold black frames. In terms of materials, acetate is still leading the race, especially with full-rim frames that currently dominate the market.

Spectacles and children (12 years old and below)

With a drastically increasing myopia rate amongst children, as a precaution, parents should assure exposure of between two and three hours of daylight, which can act as a counterbalance and help maintain healthy eyes.

Exposure to light increases the levels of dopamine in the eye and this seems to prevent elongation of the eyeball. For children that already wear glasses, there are many kids glasses in the market available with plastic lenses, especially in the lower price range.

Our suggestion is not to economise in eye wear and ensure that the glasses feature polycarbonate lenses, as these are more impact resistant and therefore safer for children. In the US, this is already the standard for children’s glasses.

 

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Hyperopia | Diseases And Disorders

Hyperopia is one of several eye conditions called refractive errors, which means that light entering the eye is not properly focused on the retina (the light-sensitive layer of tissue at the back of the eyeball). It is not a disease of the eye in the strict sense.

Description of Hyperopia

Hyperopia, or farsightedness, is a condition that develops when a person’s eyeball is abnormally short from front to back, or when the cornea (the clear front portion of the eyeball) is abnormally flat. In a normal eye, light entering the eye through the cornea is focused by the lens of the eye on the retina. In hyperopia, the abnormal shortness of the eye or the flatness of the cornea causes the lens to focus images behind the retina. This incorrect focus means that objects at a distance can be seen more clearly than those that are close to the viewer. If the hyperopia is severe, the person may be able to see clearly only objects that are quite far away.

Demographics of Hyperopia

Hyperopia is a common refractive error in the general population, affecting about 25 percent of the general population. In addition, the condition tends to run in families. Hyperopia is often combined with astigmatism, another type of refractive error caused by irregularities in the curvature of the cornea or the lens of the eye.

Most babies are mildly hyperopic at birth. Hyperopia in children is usually less severe than hyperopia in adults, partly because the eyeball in many children lengthens as they grow older and allows the eye to focus  normally. It is thought that between 6 and 9 percent of children in the United States may have mild hyperopia. Boys and girls are equally affected. There are, however, racial and ethnic differences, with Native Americans, African Americans, and Pacific Islanders having higher than average rates of hyperopia.

There is a condition similar to hyperopia called presbyopia that appears in middle-aged adults. Presbyopia is a type of farsightedness that develops because the lens of the eye becomes less flexible with age and cannot change its shape as easily when the person is trying to focus on near objects (usually reading materials). Most people over forty will develop some degree of presbyopia.

Hyperopia that went unnoticed during a person’s younger years may become apparent in middle age, when the person begins to develop presbyopia as well.

Causes and Symptoms of Hyperopia

In addition to a short eyeball or flatter cornea, hyperopia can be caused in some people by abnormal development of the eye or by trauma to the eye. In a very few cases, hyperopia may be related to disorders of the nervous system or to medications that affect the eye’s ability to focus. In general, genetic factors are thought to play a more important role in hyperopia than environmental factors or personal history.

Hyperopia in younger children may not cause noticeable symptoms. Older children and adults, however, will often develop the following symptoms:

• Having to squint while reading.

• Frequent blinking and difficulty focusing on close objects.

• Red or teary eyes, or burning or aching in the eyes.

• Blurry vision.

• Headaches or general discomfort in the eye after a long period of reading, writing, or doing other close work.

People who have these symptoms should make an appointment with an optometrist (an eye care professional who is trained to diagnose refractive errors) or an ophthalmologist (a doctor who specializes in diagnosing diseases of the eye) to find out whether they need corrective lenses.

Diagnosis of Hyperopia

Hyperopia and other refractive errors are evaluated by a series of vision tests. After the examiner takes a history of the patient’s symptoms (including a family history of eye problems), the patient is usually asked to read the letters on an eye chart. The examiner may also shine lights into the eyes or administer eye drops that allow him or her to see all the structures inside the eye clearly.

To measure the strength of the lens needed to correct the patient’s hyperopia, the examiner uses a device called a photopter (or refractor). The photopter is placed in front of the patient’s eyes, and the examiner moves various lenses in and out of the device while the patient reads letters on an eye chart located 20 feet (6 meters) away.

Treatment of Hyperopia

Screening for and treatment of hyperopia in school-age children is important because significant hyperopia can lead to strabismus (inability of the eyes to work together) or amblyopia, a condition in which there is poor vision in one eye that is not caused by disease. In addition, uncorrected hyperopia can lead to problems in school, including learning disorders and loss of interest in reading.

Hyperopia can be treated nonsurgically by prescription eyeglasses or contact lenses, which are prescribed by the optometrist or ophthalmologist but made and fitted by an optician. There are also surgical options for people who dislike glasses or contact lenses. The two most common surgical procedures for hyperopia involve reshaping the cornea with a laser or implanting an artificial lens in the front of the eye. Reshaping the cornea works better if the refractive error is only low to moderate. Patients with a high degree of refractive error generally do better with lens implantation.

There are drawbacks to surgical correction for refractive errors, however. These include the risks of infection, development of haze in the cornea, or dry eyes. In some cases the surgeon may need to perform a second operation if the first one either overcorrected or undercorrected the shape of the patient’s cornea.

It is important for a patient diagnosed with hyperopia to discuss all the treatment options with the optometrist or ophthalmologist, as no two people will have exactly the same degree of farsightedness or the same lifestyle.

Prognosis of Hyperopia

Most patients with hyperopia do well after being fitted with corrective lenses or having eye surgery. Hyperopia caused by the shape of the eyeball or the cornea does not get worse with age and is unlikely to lead to vision loss.

Prevention of Hyperopia

Hyperopia is largely a matter of heredity and cannot be prevented. People can, however, prevent strabismus or other complications of hyperopia by visual screening in childhood and regular eye checkups at all ages.

Corrective lens#Lens shape is … | What is this ? – Top definitions

Corrective lens#Lens shape

A corrective lens is a lens worn in front of the eye, mainly used to treat myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism, and presbyopia. Glasses or “spectacles” are worn on the face a short distance in front of the eye. Contact lenses are worn directly on the surface of the eye. Intraocular lenses are surgically implanted most commonly after cataract removal, but recently for purely refractive purposes. Myopia requires a divergent lens, whereas hyperopia (far-sightedness) requires convergent lens.

Corrective lenses are typically prescribed by an ophthalmologist or an optometrist. The prescription consists of all the specifications necessary to make the lens. Prescriptions typically include the power specifications of each lens. Strengths are generally prescribed in quarter-diopter steps (0.25 D) because most people cannot generally distinguish between smaller increments (e.g., eighth-diopter steps / 0.125 D).

There are two different conventions for indicating the amount of cylinder: “plus cylinder notation” and “minus cylinder notation”. In the former, the cylinder power is a number of diopters more convergent than the sphere power. That means the spherical power describes the most divergent meridian and the cylindrical component describes the most convergent. In the latter, the cylinder power is a number of diopters more divergent than the sphere component. Thus the sphere power describes the most convergent meridian and the cylinder component describes the most divergent. Europe typically follows the plus cylinder convention while the US typically follows the minus cylinder convention. Minus cylinder notation is also more common in Asia, although either style may be encountered there. There is no difference in these forms of notation and it is easy to convert between them: simply add the sphere and cylinder numbers together to produce the converted sphere—then change the sign of the cylinder number. For example a lens with {sphere, cylinder} of would convert to {-3.75, +1.50}.

Related Sites for Corrective lens#Lens shape

Low Vision Eyeglasses LowVisionEyeglasses.com: Magnifying …

With advancing eye diseases, like macular degeneration, ordinary eyeglasses are no longer helpful for improving eyesight.   Macular degeneration creates a type of blurriness that cannot be helped with normal eyeglasses.

Traditional eyeglass lenses are designed to focus light and images on to the macula located in the back of the eye.  Everyday glasses are used to  correct the eye’s focusing problems: myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), astigmatism (unequal cornea curvatures) and presbyopia (decreased reading vision after age 40).  These lens corrections  put the image clearly onto the macula allowing for 20/20 vision when the macula and fovea are healthy.

When the macula is damaged the “picture remains faulty” even when the glasses are focusing the image properly on to the macula.  The more the macula is damaged the poorer the vision. 



Macular degeneration creates a blurry or blind spot in the center of vision.  This interferes with reading and seeing fine details.  Regular glasses are not able to restore this vision loss.  If the film is damaged in a camera the vision will be blurred even when the camera is focused properly.

Low vision glasses are not your regular pair of eye glasses. They magnify the image beyond the damage areas in the macula.

 

Magnification is key for seeing better with macular degeneration. Thankfully, macular degeneration does not affect the side or peripheral vision. 

Telescopic glasses are different from normal lenses due to their ability to magnify.  They use several lenses in combination.  Their design magnifies the incoming image to help people see better.  By spreading the magnified image to undamaged parts of the macula and retina (peripheral vision) people see better.  They help to see “around the blind spot”.



Telescopic glasses still need presciptions for myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism,  and presbyopia to focus the magnified image onto the greater macular area.
 

Bioptics have built-in zoom abilities with their dual focusing system.  The design allows the viewer to switch back and forth between the magnified and normal view.  In order to switch back and forth between the powers a small tilt of the head is required.

The slimmed-down telescopes are mounted high in the eyeglass lens.

The normal view is seen underneath.

The magnified view is seen through the top.

Bioptics allow you to zoom in and out by raising and lowering the
head.



Dual Modality Treatment for Vision Enhancement


YouTube Bioptic Success Stories


To down load a free





Low Vision Consulting – Connecticut

I'm in my 50s and would like LASIK surgery — is my age a concern …

DEAR DOCTOR K:

I’m in my 50s and considering LASIK surgery. Should my age be a factor when deciding whether to have this procedure?

DEAR READER:

I can understand why you’re considering LASIK (laser-assisted in-situ keratomileusis). It can correct common eye problems — nearsightedness (myopia), farsightedness (hyperopia) and astigmatism — and can eliminate your need for glasses or contact lenses.

LASIK corrects vision by reshaping the cornea, the clear dome at the front of the eye. The procedure is painless, and complications are few when the doctor is experienced. (I’ve put a detailed illustration of the procedure on my website, AskDoctorK.com.)

 

As LASIK has become more popular, many of us have contemplated having our vision surgically corrected. Even in your 50s or beyond, if your eyes are otherwise healthy, LASIK surgery can produce excellent results.

Age itself isn’t a big factor in deciding whether to have LASIK surgery. Surgical outcomes are similar regardless of age. But you and your doctor should consider the following age-related eye conditions when making the decision:

  • Cataracts. With age, the lens of the eye can become clouded. If this happens, the clouded lens can be removed and an artificial one implanted. If you’ve already had LASIK surgery, it’s trickier to choose the correct lenses for cataract surgery. If there’s any sign of clouding, your ophthalmologist may recommend cataract surgery first, and to reconsider LASIK surgery only after the cataract surgery has healed.
  • Glaucoma is caused by increased fluid pressure within the eye. The pressure affects the optic nerve, which starts in the back of your eye, leads to the brain and allows you to see. If glaucoma is untreated, it can lead to blindness. Ophthalmologists screen for glaucoma by checking intraocular pressure (fluid pressure inside the eye) and looking for optic nerve damage. LASIK surgery leads to lower intraocular pressure readings. This may interfere with early diagnosis. Tell your ophthalmologist if you’ve had LASIK when you are being screened for glaucoma. You should not have LASIK if you have moderate or severe glaucoma. If your glaucoma is mild and easily managed, you may still be a candidate for the surgery.
  • Dry eye syndrome. With age, your eyes produce fewer tears. LASIK often worsens dry eye. Any ophthalmologist you see about LASIK should ask you about whether your eyes have a tendency to be dry, but just in case they don’t ask, be sure to mention it.
  • Presbyopia. In our 40s and 50s, we become less able to focus clearly on near objects. That’s because the lenses inside our eyes get stiff, and a stiff lens can’t bend light in the way that’s necessary to see near objects. The usual remedy is to wear reading glasses. LASIK doesn’t prevent presbyopia. If you have LASIK in your 40s, you’re still likely to need reading glasses within the next 10 years or so.

The price for LASIK varies by doctor and by community. The average price may be around $2000-$2500. Health insurance generally does not cover the cost.


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