Presbyopia
Presbyopia is physiological insufficiency of accommodation associated with the aging of the eye that results in progressively worsening ability to focus clearly on close objects. Also known as age-related farsightedness (or age-related long sight in the UK), it affects many adults over the age of 40. A common sign of presbyopia is difficulty reading small print which results in having to hold reading material farther away. Other symptoms associated can be headaches and eyestrain. Different people will have different degrees of problems. Other types of refractive errors may exist at the same time as presbyopia. This condition is similar to hypermetropia or far-sightedness which starts in childhood and exhibits similar symptoms of blur in the vision for close objects.
| Presbyopia | |
|---|---|
| Other names | The aging eye condition |
| A person with presbyopia cannot easily read the small print of an ingredients list (top) compared to someone without presbyopia (bottom). | |
| Specialty | Optometry, ophthalmology |
| Symptoms | Difficulty reading small print, having to hold reading material farther away, headaches, eyestrain |
| Usual onset | Progressively worsening in those over 40 years old |
| Causes | Aging-related hardening of the lens of the eye |
| Diagnostic method | Eye exam |
| Treatment | Eyeglasses, contact lenses |
| Frequency | 25% currently; all eventually affected |
Presbyopia is a typical part of the aging process. It occurs due to age related changes in the lens (decreased elasticity and increased hardness) and ciliary muscle (decreased strength and ability to move the lens), causing the eye to focus right behind rather than on the retina when looking at close objects. It is a type of refractive error along with nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism. Diagnosis is by an eye examination.
Presbyopia can be corrected using glasses, contact lenses, multifocal intraocular lenses, or LASIK (PresbyLASIK) surgery. The most common treatment is glass correction using appropriate convex lens. Glasses used to correct presbyopia may be simple reading glasses, bifocals, trifocals, or progressive lens.
People over 40 are at risk for developing presbyopia and all people become affected to some degree. Around 25% of people (1.8 billion globally) are currently affected.