Aging and Your Vision - Presbyopia
Contact your New York, NY Eye Doctor to Find Out About Treatment Options
Many adults see signs of presbyopia or an impaired ability to focus on objects that are close, as they age. With the growing worldwide population of older adults, a larger number of individuals develop the condition, which is an unavoidable result of your aging eye.
The lenses of your eye curve when focusing on objects at differing distances. Some theorize that as you grow older, that curvature diminishes because the lenses lose their give. This phenomenon is known as presbyopia and is often noticed by blurred vision when focusing on things right before your eyes. This often starts to take place around someone turns forty. Those with presbyopia usually cope with the reduced vision by holding the paper away from their eyes or standing at a distance from the object they are looking at. Transitions from looking at distant things to nearer ones are often strenuous for those with presbyopia. This tension could worsen the situation resulting in eye strain, fatigues or headaches.
Most often bifocal lenses or progressive addition lenses (PALs) are used to deal with this issue. Bifocal lenses are separated into two points of focus, one is for viewing things at a distance and the lower portion of the lens is for focusing on things that are close by. Progressive addition lenses are similar to bifocal lenses, but the transitions between the two prescriptions are more gradual. Users can more easily change focus, as they could with normal eyesight. An alternative would be reading glasses which are usually worn just when needed as opposed to all day.
If contact lenses are preferred over eyeglasses, there are other options such as multifocal contacts. Multifocals don't work for everyone and can sometimes be uncomfortable, so it may take a few tries to determine if and in what combination they work for you.
Furthermore, there are surgical options that could be considered that should be discussed with your eye doctor. A lot of patients are most successful using a combination of treatments for presbyopia. Furthermore, since your eyesight will likely get worse with age, you will probably be required to keep adjusting your prescription. The positive news is, there is quite a bit of experimental treatment on the market currently to discover other effective solutions for the growing number of people dealing with presbyopia.
Seeing signs of presbyopia? Call for a visit with your New York, NY optometrist. Improved vision can be yours!
