Presbyopia is near-vision difficulty, caused by aging.
It starts to happen to people after age 40; the presbyopic eye can't focus on close objects: the result is blurred near vision.
The aging process decreases the accommodation ability (thickening of the lens) of the eye, resulting in a decrease in the focal range. This is age! Even the accommodation power of a twenty-year-old person is less than that of a-ten-year-old.
If this accommodation power drops 3 diopters, the scale used to measure sight, in range, presbyopia becomes apparent. When presbyopia starts, the person tries to read by holding the reading materials as far away from them as possible.
Since the presbyopic eye can't focus the divergent light rays coming from close objects, presbyopic people try to move away these objects in order to bring them into their focal range. That’s why you find yourself holding jars with small print at arm’s length.
Presbyopes need reading glasses, these are the same lenses used by hyperopics (+ signed, thin edged, loop like). The following table shows the average magnitude (dioptric power) of reading glasses throughout the age groups.
Age Diopters
40-45 yrs +1.25
45-50 yrs +1.50
50-55 yrs +1.75
55-60 yrs +2.00
60-65 yrs +2.25
More than 65yrs +2.50
As you can deduce from this table, the older you are, a more powerful prescription you need.
Presbyopia happens to people who mightn’t have had to wear glasses up to now; those with perfect vision (emmetropic) will also suffer from presbyopia. Only mild myopics may have satisfactory near vision when they get older.
Their extremely superior near vision ability decreases to a normal level after the age of 40. Monovision, which is a solution for presbyopia, is based on the natural advantage of mild myopia.
Presbyopia seems inevitable for most; and there are 600 million people on the planet who suffer from it.
Advances in eye technology mean that there are no solutions available that can free you from your corrective eyewear, and two types of procedure are available at Optilase Laser Eye Clinic.
Call the Optilase Clinic nearest you to make a free appointment and see if you might be a candidate for one of the revolutionary eye procedures that can fix presbyopia in a few minutes.
Call +353 1 223 8821 to find out more, or see www.optilase.com