Myopia

Not seeing clearly in the distance is usually caused by myopia or nearsightedness. Nearly 30% of Americans are myopic. Children with one myopic parent have a 2X greater risk of developing myopia whereas those with two myopic parents have an 8X greater risk. Physical length of the eye seems to be the biggest factor. In addition to heredity, visual stress is thought to be a contributing factor to myopia.Visual stress is caused by too much close work. Even though the tendency to develop myopia may be inherited, its actual development may be affected by how a person uses his eyes. Individuals who spend considerable time reading, working at a computer or doing other intense close visual tasks increase their visual stress and possibly the incidence of myopia.

A common symptom of nearsightedness is difficulty seeing things far away like a movie or street signs. Generally, myopia first occurs in school-age children. Because the eye continues to grow during childhood, myopia progresses until about age 20.

Correction Options for Myopia

• Glasses
• Contact Lenses
• LASIK (refractive surgery)

Not quite myopia:

• Some people experience blurred distance vision only at night. This “night myopia” may be due to the low level of light making it difficult for the eyes to focus properly or the increased pupil size during dark conditions, allowing more peripheral,unfocused light rays to enter the eye.

• People who do an excessive amount of near vision work may experience a false or “pseudo” myopia. The blurred distance vision is caused by over use of the eyes’ focusing mechanism. After long periods of near work, the eyes are unable to relax and refocus to see clearly in the distance. The symptoms are usually temporary and clear distance vision may return after resting the eyes.

• Symptoms of nearsightedness may also be a sign of variations in blood sugar levels in persons with diabetes or an early indication of a developing cataract.

If you are experiencing blurry vision at any distance give Westside Optometry a call.