For anyone with imperfect vision, night time driving can be a really challenging experience. Whereas being behind the wheel in busy day-time traffic can be a hairy enough experience at the best of times, at least in daylight we can see everything that is happening around us and react almost instantly to instances that arise. The same, alas, cannot be said during the hours of dawn to dusk when our vision is impaired by darkness combined with bright light ....statistically these are the most dangerous driving hours and the period when the vast majority of crashes occur.
But why is this? I mean we can after all still see in the dark! Yes indeed we can, tis true, but the problem is our vision is just not as good when we are driving in the dark. The reason is simply that we experience greatly reduced depth of field (the depth to which we can see) and peripheral vision (that which allows us to see what is happening all round us on the road) – a bad combination which can cause our eyes to become dazzled, dilated, temporarily blind or blurred.
The thing with night time myopia is this – it does not only affect those who are short-sighted (myopic) in their everyday lives; even younger people with what we would term “perfect vision”, can become temporarily myopic….manifesting itself in the form of glare and halo-like affects, the result of bright light set against a dark sky.
A “Halo” (in the night time driving sense of the word!) is a visual effect which short-sighted people will experience when driving at night; you know that feeling: there you are happily driving along when suddenly an on-coming car comes around the corner, completely forgets to dim the full head light beams, and aaaaggghh....suddenly you are left completely blind, dazed, terrified and confused for what is a probably a mere split second, but at the time, feels more like an eternity!
“Glare” meanwhile is a term which we use to refer to ultra-bright light which can be very uncomfortable and disorientating, particularly when trying to maintain control of a vehicle. Light which results in glare can cause us to squint, making our eyes teary and blurry and usually forcing us to look away; this of course is a natural instinct and a way of our eyes protecting themselves against damaging light...but it is also a highly dangerous reflex that causes us to take our eyes off the road for just that split second.
Thankfully though we at Optilase offer a very sophisticated solution to resolving these night-time vision woes when driving in low light: with our Advanced Custom Vue Wavefront Technology, you need never fear driving at night-time again!
Advanced Custom Vue Wavefront Technology uses the most sophisticated technology to provide a tailored and bespoke treatment, correcting your unique vision according to the exact imperfections of your eyes. This is no one-size-fits-all solution here folks....this technology essentially recognises that each individual’s eyes are completely unique, just in the same way as no two finger prints are ever identical. Thus, each Wavefront Technology treatment is 100% customised to meet your precise vision requirements.
Wavefront Technology uses an incredible, technologically advanced scanner called the WaveScan. This generates a precise, fully accurate map of how light passes through the eye. The measurements obtained in this way are 25 times more accurate than measurements obtained during an ordinary regular eye test, showing all of the very precise, natural and unique imperfections that exist in your eyes only. It is this technology which enables Wavefront Technology to correct vision to an even better level than is possible with glasses or contact lenses.
To find out more about Laser Eye Surgery with Advanced Custom Vue Wavefront Technology, please contact Optilase today on +353 1 223 8821 or fill out the green contact form above right. See the difference with Optilase!
Article written by Alan Shanley