Presbyopia and Getting Older

Contact your Overland Park, KS Optometrist to Find Out 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 increasing international population of older adults, a larger number of individuals are developing presbyopia, which currently cannot be escaped.

Your natural lenses bend to focus on objects at differing distances. Some theorize that as you grow older, that elasticity diminishes since the natural lenses harden. This condition is known as presbyopia and is often first noticed by an increased difficulty focusing on things right in front of you. This usually starts to happen any time after someone turns 40. Those with the condition usually manage with near visual impairment by holding the paper far away or standing away from the object they are looking at. Shifting from focusing on far off objects to nearer ones is often tiring for those with presbyopia. The tension can worsen the situation by causing headaches, eye strain or fatigue.

Most commonly bifocal lenses or progressives (PALs) are used to resolve presbyopia. A bifocal lens has two prescriptions for vision, the upper portion is for distance vision and a second, lower portion for seeing objects that are close by. Progressive addition lenses are similar to bifocals, but they offer a more gradual gradient between the two prescriptions and have no visible distinction between them. Users can more easily change focus, as they might if they had uninhibited vision. Another option is reading glasses which are usually worn just when needed as opposed to all day.

If contact lenses are preferable, there are other alternatives such as multifocal contact lenses. It may take some time to decide upon the best use of contacts due to the fact that different lenses can cause discomfort or blurriness.

There are also options for other procedures including surgery available that you may want to discuss with your eye doctor. A significant number of people find the most success by using a combination of options for presbyopia. Also, since your vision will continue to deteriorate as you age, it is likely that you will be required to keep adapting the strength of your correction. With the population growing older, there is a significant amount of experimental treatment on the market currently to discover additional and perhaps more permanent solutions for the growing number of people dealing with presbyopia.

Noticing signs of presbyopia? Schedule a visit with your Overland Park, KS optometrist. Better vision is worth it!