Presbyopia continued

Our ability to "see" starts when light enters the eye through the cornea. The shape of the cornea, lens, and eyeball help bend (refract) light rays in such a manner that light is focused into a point precisely on the retina.

The crystalline lens plays a key role in focusing light on the retina. With the help of tiny ciliary muscles, it changes shape, or accommodates, for both near and distant objects by bending or flattening out to help focus light rays.  However, as one ages, not only does focusing on near objects become more difficult, the eye also is unable to adjust as quickly to rapid changes in focus on near and distant objects.

When does it occur?

The age at which presbyopia is first noticed varies, but it usually begins to interfere with near vision in the early 40’s.

How is the problem diagnosed?
An accurate, thorough description of symptoms and a comprehensive eye health examination, including a testing of the quality of your near vision, are necessary to diagnose presbyopia.

How is presbyopia treated?
Usually, the treatment for presbyopia is prescription eyeglasses to help the eye accommodate for close-up work. Prescription lenses (reading glasses) help refract light rays more effectively to compensate for the loss of near vision.

If you do not have other vision problems, such as nearsightedness or astigmatism, you may only need glasses for reading or other tasks done at a close range. If you have other refractive errors, such as nearsightedness, bifocal or progressive addition lenses (in which the power of the lens changes gradually towards the bottom to allow reading, without the reading portion of the bifocal lens obviously visible) are often prescribed.

Can I still wear contact lenses?

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